Sources Sought Notice: SURGICAL NURSING SERVICES for the Great Plains Area Indian Health Service (IHS) Pine Ridge Service Unit Hospital in Pine Ridge, South Dakota.

Sources Sought Notice: SURGICAL NURSING SERVICES for the Great Plains Area Indian Health Service (IHS) Pine Ridge Service Unit Hospital in Pine Ridge, South Dakota.

Sources Sought Notice Number: IHSPR-SS-26-1521215

This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation or commitment by the Indian Health Service.

This notice is intended strictly for market research to determine the availability of Indian Small Businesses Economic Enterprise (ISBEE), Indian Economic Enterprises (IEE), or Other Small Businesses.

The Government is evaluating potential application of the Buy Indian Act for this acquisition. Market research results will determine whether a Buy Indian set-aside is appropriate.

Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. The anticipated applicable NAICS code for this acquisition is 561320, Temporary Help Services. Other relevant NAICS codes will be considered based on responses received.

1.0 BACKGROUND

The IHS currently provides health services to approximately 1.5 million American Indians and Alaska Natives who belong to more than 557 federally recognized tribes in 34 states. The mission of the Pine Ridge Service Unit (PRSU) Indian Health Service is to raise the physical, mental, social and spiritual health of American Indians and Alaska Natives to the highest level. To meet this mission, The Pine Ridge Service Unit requires contractor support to assist the nursing department during times of acute nursing staff shortages in the Surgery Department.

2.0  OBJECTIVE

The primary objective is to provide for direct patient care to the Surgery Department in accordance with this contract’s performance work statement requirement. The Contractor shall provide all personnel, supervision, and other items necessary to provide Surgical Nursing services for Pine Ridge Service Unit as established in the performance work statement. Duties and responsibilities consist of an independent Registered Nurse or temporary nursing agency. Contractor personnel shall work in a Surgery Nursing Department, but may infrequently be floated to the Emergency Room, Outpatient Clinic or Acute Care In-Patient units to act as a patient observer or pass medications or other intermittent care needs as staffing needs arise.

3.0 SCOPE

The contractor shall furnish Surgery Nursing services. These services will be compatible with the facility’s operating capacity and equipment. The contractor shall report to the Surgery Nurse Supervisor, Deputy Chief Nurse Executive, and/or Chief Nurse Executive at PRSU. Contract services shall cover the range of Surgery nursing services typically provided in rural civilian practice, including but not limited to the following: Adult and Neonatal Venipuncture and Skin puncture for placement of an IV or for collection of blood samples, operate and maintain sterile operating suites and equipment, perform sterile supply passes, perform surgical timeouts, perform surgical counts, post-op pain management, pre-op assessment, IV infusions, assist with paracentesis procedures, extremity tourniquets, use of surgical equipment and machines, placement and monitoring of oxygen therapy, medication and vaccine administration, administration (oral, transdermal, intravenous, intramuscular, sublingual subcutaneous, nasal, rectal, nebulized, etc) medication, placement and care of urinary catheters, positioning of surgical patients, EKG completion, cardiac monitoring, patient education related to wellness and chronic illness appropriate to patient learning preference and education level, wound care including vacuum assisted closure dressings, general diabetes education, head-to-toe physical examination and documentation of normal and abnormal findings for all ages, preventative wellness screenings including for intimate partner violence, diabetes foot checks, alcohol use disorder, smoking practices, breast feeding use, falls risk, social determinants of health, Depression screening, vital sign assessment and reassessment, mini-mental screening, measurement and fitting of DME supplies, Point of care testing, lab sample collection, intravenous catheter placement and removal, foley catheter care and placement, administering of blood and blood products.

4.0 CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS/ AND PERSONNEL QUALIFICATIONS

All services shall be provided strictly as non-personal services. No employer-employee relationship is created between the Government and Contractor personnel. The Contractor shall provide professional Surgical Nursing support as described in the PWS. Contract provider shall comply with IHS facility policies, procedures, protocols and Standards of Care.

5.0 TYPE OF ORDER

The Government has not yet determined the contract type. Contract type will be determined during acquisition planning based on the results of market research and other applicable considerations.

6.0 ANTICIPATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

Period of Performance: will be for a base ordering period of twenty-four weeks with 7 option periods consisting of twenty-four weeks each; October 18, 2026 to June 22, 2030. The anticipated period of performance is provided for planning purposes only and may be revised prior to solicitation.

7.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Services shall be performed at the Great Plains Area, Indian Health Service, Pine Ridge Service Unit Hospital in Pine Ridge, SD.

8.0 REPORT(S)/DELIVERABLES AND DELIVERY SCHEDULE

The Contractor shall ensure Contractor Personnel participate in QA/PI/RM activities to the extent required by QA/PI/RM plan or regulation. None of the functions to be performed are inherently governmental. The Government will evaluate the Contractor's professional and administrative performance under this contract using quality assurance standards specified by The Joint Commission and CMS Conditions of Participation. Contractor shall provide all data necessary for COR surveillance and QASP validation. Formal reporting of any performance failure or compliance issue.

9.0 INVOICING

Will be required to utilize the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP) in accordance with HHSAR 352.232-71, Electronic Submission and Processing of Payment Requests.

The IPP website address is: https://www.ipp.gov. If you require assistance registering or IPP account access, please contact the IPP Helpdesk at (866) 973-3131 (M-F 8AM to 6PM ET), or IPPCustomerSupport@fiscal.treasury.gov.

10.0 Capability Statement/Information:

Interested parties are expected to review this notice to familiarize themselves with the requirements of this project. Failure to do so will be at your firm’s own risk. The following information shall be included in the capability statement:

1. A general overview of the respondents’ opinions about the difficulty and/or feasibility of the potential requirement, and any information regarding innovative ideas or concepts.
2. Information in sufficient detail about the respondent’s (a) current capability and capacity to perform the work; (b) prior completed events of similar nature/size; (c) organizational experience and management capability; and (d) examples of prior completed Government contracts and other related information.
3. To be considered capable of fulfilling this requirement evidence of an Offerors’ ability to fully satisfy the requirements described in the PWS must be provided.
4. The respondents’ UEI number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HUBZone, etc.) Pursuant to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code: 561320, Temporary Help Services.
5. Any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the requirements of the potential acquisition.
6. The capability statement shall not exceed 10 single-sided pages (including all attachments, resumes, charts, etc.) presented in single-space and using a 12-point font size minimum, in either Microsoft Word or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), with 8-1/2 by 11-inch paper size, and 1 inch top, bottom, left and right margins.
7. All proprietary information should be marked as such. Statements should also include an indication of current certified small business status; this indication should be clearly marked on the first page of your capability statement (preferably placed under the eligible small business concern’s name and address). Responses will be reviewed only by IHS personnel and will be held in a confidential manner.

Closing Statement

Point of Contact: Kim Carpio, Purchasing Agent, at kim.carpio@ihs.gov

Submission Instructions:

Interested parties shall submit capability via email to Kim Carpio, Purchasing Agent, at kim.carpio@ihs.gov. Must include Sources Sought Number IHSPR-SS-26-1521273 in the Subject line. The due date for receipt of statements is June 29, 2026, 3:00 p.m. Mountain Time.

All responses must be received by the specified due date and time to be considered.

This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of IHS.

IHS does not intend to award a contract based on responses nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. As a result of this notice, IHS may issue a Request for Quote (RFQ).

THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against IHS shall arise because of a response to this notice or IHS’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement.

Disclaimer and Important Notes. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization’s qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in SAM.gov. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.

Confidentiality. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response.