Title
Chief Administrative Office, Procurement and Contracts Division, on behalf of the Health and Human Services Agency, recommending the Board consider the following in regards to contracting out services to assist in the accreditation of Public Health:
1) Make findings in accordance with ordinance 3.13.030 that it is more economical and feasible to retain an outside consultant to provide consulting services to plan, organize, and coordinate the Agency's Public Health Division efforts to achieve national Public Health Accreditation;
2) Award Request for Proposal No. 15-918-013 to the successful proposer, Barbara Aved Associates of Sacramento, California,to provide such services;
3) Authorize the Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA), Public Health Division, to negotiate an Agreement with Barbara Aved Associates in an amount not to exceed $90,000;
4) Authorize the Chair to execute said Agreement, contingent upon approval by County Counsel and Risk Management;
5) Authorize the Purchasing Agent, or designee, to execute any amendments relating to the Agreement developed in association with RFP No. 15-918-013, which do not affect the maximum dollar amount or term of the Agreement, contingent upon approval by County Counsel and Risk Management; and
6) Authorize the Director of HHSA, or designee, to execute any necessary administrative documents relating to said Agreement, including any documents associated with the public health department accreditation application process.
FUNDING: Public Health Fund Balance.
Body
BUDGET SUMMARY: |
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Total Estimated Cost
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$90,000 |
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Budget - Current FY
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$45,000 |
Budget - Future FY
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$45,000 |
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New Funding
. |
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Savings
|
|
Other
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Total Funding Available
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$90,000 |
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Change To Net County Cost
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$0 |
Any funds not expdended during the current fiscal year will be rolled forward to FY 2015/16.
Fiscal Impact/Change to Net County Cost
There is no Net County Cost associated with this Board item. Sufficient appropriations were included in the Fiscal Year 2014-15 budget request, and will be included in future fiscal years (FY) for the term of the Agreement.
Background
National public health accreditation is defined as the development of standards, a process to measure health department performance against those standards, and recognition for those departments that meet the standard. Public Health department accreditation standards address a range of core public health programs and activities including health education, health promotion, community health, chronic disease prevention and control, communicable disease, maternal and child health, public health emergency preparedness, access to clinical services, public health laboratory services, public health administration and governance.
Accreditation is achieved through a series of projects overseen by the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB), a nonprofit organization, with the goal of advancing the quality and performance of public health departments. The accreditation process requires a public health department to document their methodology and capacity to deliver the three core functions of public health (assessment of community need, policy development, and identify a range of services to address those needs) as well as the ten essential public health services that provide the framework for public health services. The choice to seek accreditation demonstrates the dedication and desire to ensure the highest quality of public health services with an emphasis on continuous quality improvement. As of December 20, 2014, there were sixty accredited public health departments nationwide. Locally, Ventura County, and the State of California were recently accredited. A survey of other counties identified 16 counties are moving forward with Public Health Accreditation at this time, nine of which have hired consultants to assist with this phase of the preparation process.
Public Health Accreditation will benefit the County through the identification of strengths currently provided by Public Health, identify opportunities for improvement, increased accountability to the public for public health programs and services, increased communication and collaboration among internal and external partners, and the increased access to resources such as streamlined application process for grants and funding. Accreditation is taken into consideration by grantors when considering applications. The accreditation process includes seven steps: pre-application, application, documentation selection and submission, site visit, accreditation decision, reports, and reaccreditation.
The accreditation process to prepare for application submittal is complex and requires in-depth knowledge of both the subject matter and project, which the consultant has. In addition, the Health and Human Services Agency has determined that it would benefit from the expertise of a consultant who has worked with other counties in applying for Public Health Accreditation.
At the request of HHSA, the Procurement and Contracts division issued a RFP for consulting services to plan, organize, and coordinate the Agency's Public Health Division (PHD) efforts to achieve national Public Health Accrediation. Four (4) proposals were received and evaluated. The evaluation team consisted of the Public Health Officer, HHSA administrative staff and one staff from the Community Development Agency - Environmental Management Division, and were evaluated on experience, qualifications, references, services provided, and cost.
Reason for Recommendation
Award of this RFP to the selected consulting professional will ensure appropriate development, processing, and execution of the steps required to receive accreditation of the Public Health Department.
Clerk of the Board Follow Up Actions
Following Board approval, HHSA will finalize an Agreement with Barbara Aved Associates of Sacramento contingent upon approval by County Counsel and Risk Management, and return two (2) originals of the vendor-executed Agreement to the Clerk of the Board for final execution by the Chair of the Board of Supervisors.
Following final execution, the Board Clerk will forward one (1) original of the fully executed Agreement to the HHSA Contracts Unit for distribution and administration.
Contact
Don Ashton, M.P.A., Director