Nutritional Sampling Design for the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) Study

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Office of Acquisitions Station Support Simplified Acquisitions Branch on behalf of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) intends to negotiate with and award a purchase order, on a non competitive basis, to the Department of Health, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, to provide service in coding of nutritional survey data for the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity Across the Life Span (HANDLS) Study. This acquisition will be processed under FAR Part 12 - Acquisition for Commercial Items and will be made pursuant to the authority of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1) and FAR 13.501 (a)(1) to use Simplified Acquisition Procedure for commercial items. The North American Industry Classification System Code is 541990 and the size standard is $7.0 million. This acquisition is a fixed price type. The period of performance is one year from award date with two (2) one-year optional periods. The National Institute on Aging Intramural Research Program is embarking on a longitudinal study of the effects of race and socioeconomic status on healthy aging in a representative sample of community-dwelling residents from the Baltimore metropolitan region. This study requires a detailed knowledge of the public health characteristics of this region and the ways in which racial and socioeconomic data must be collected to assess their influence on a variety of health outcomes such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular functioning, psychophysiological and cognitive performance, and muscular strength and conditioning. Nutritional status influences an individual's risk for the development of chronic conditions, thereby affecting a person's ability to live a healthy and productive life. This project will define the criteria for determining the sample population's nutritional status and the effects of nutritional status over the course of the longitudinal study. The project looks to establish the planning documentation and epidemiological sample frame for conducting a longitudinal study that disentangles the confounding effects of race and socioeconomic status on long-term healthy aging. The goal of this project will focus on creating survey-sampling methodologies and applications unique to a diverse and complex population, spanning numerous and various socio-economic patterns, with a particular focus on assessment made by a longitudinal study. One unique study development goal to be established by this project is the development of criteria essential to assess nutritional status for segmenting a diverse population base. Nutrition monitoring methods to be used to develop this criterion include multiple dietary recalls, blood biochemistries, functional status measures, food security measures, and anthropometrical measures. The vendor will collect data from adult community dwelling volunteers; provide nutritional survey and scoring methodology for recording the nutritional constituents of participants' daily diets. The survey will be standardized so participants can be compared to one another and that participants can be compared to themselves over time. These data must be scored and entered using specifically designed nutritional look-up tables that are available then to score and enter into computer files. The vendor will assist the Institute in subsequent analyses. The University of Delaware has both the expertise and facilities for performing these analyses. Dr. Kuczmarski, a Professor of Nutrition of the Dept of Health, Nutrition, Exercise Sciences of University of Delaware, is widely regarded as an expert in the fields of minority nutrition, aging nutrition, nutritional monitoring and study design. She has the facilities and resources for analyzing these data and the expertise necessary for interpreting the results. Dr. Kuczmarski has been a senior co-investigator with the HANDLS program since 2003. She is a contributing member of the HANDLS working advisors group and the senior scientific advisory committee for the longitudinal study (HANDLS). She developed the nutritional protocols for this study and is a lead author on several manuscripts that have been published as a result of her continued contributions to the project. Dr. Kuczmarski's specific development of and expertise in the nutritional survey and scoring methodology could not be accomplished by another vendor. Her defined work with such diverse population groups as those considered by the HANDLS program make her eminently qualified for the performance of the proposed acquisition. Awarding the contract to another vendor would have detrimental impact on the on-going study. No solicitation package will be issued. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations; however, the government will consider response submitted on or before 10:00 AM E.T., December 20, 2010 to Liem T Nguyen, ln18x@nih.gov. All information furnished must be in writing and must contain sufficient detail to allow the government to determine if it can meet the above unique specifications described herein. A determination by the government not to compete this proposed acquisition based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. In order to receive an award from the NIDA vendor must be registered in the Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA) at http://orca.bpn.gov. In addition, vendor must be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) at www.ccr.gov. Please reference announcement number 1881397 on all correspondence.