The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Office of Acquisitions, National Center for Emergining and Zoonatic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID)AND The Office of Advanced Molecular Detection (OAMD) intends to negotiate a sole source contract with the National Association Of School Nurses, under authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 6.302-1, Other Than Full and Open Competition procedures., for the acquisition of technical services in support of conducting school-based active surveillance of ME/CFS among school children. THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT AND IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE QUOTES OR PROPOSALS. No solicitation is available. Firms that believe they can meet the requirement are encouraged to identify themselves and provide a substantive statement with descriptive literature and any other supporting information to the Contract Specialist within 15 days of publication of this notice. All information received within 15 days of publication of this synopsis will be considered by the Government to determine if more than one firm can meet the Government's requirements and is capable of services for school-based active surveillance of ME/CFS among school children. Responses to this posting must be submitted in writing via e-mail only. A determination not to compete the described requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Federal Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct a competitive procurement. Any questions or comments should be directed via e-mail ONLY to
[email protected]. This synopsis ends on Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at 2 PM EST. Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), a complex, chronic, debilitating multi-system disease, affects an estimated 836,000 to 2.5 million persons in the United States. However, about 90% of people with ME/CFS have not received an official diagnosis from a healthcare professional. ME/CFS affects 2 in 100 children and adolescents, which often goes undiagnosed by healthcare professionals. The diagnosis of ME/CFS might not be considered by healthcare professionals because education about this illness is subpar in many medical schools and residency programs across the country. As a result, only a small number of clinicians truly understand ME/CFS and consider it a legitimate disease. Data on disease burden of ME/CFS in children is lacking; in particular the national prevalence of ME/CFS and indicators associated with ME/CFS among school children. Data on chronic conditions among school children, such as asthma, has been collected over the years, but there has been little to no emphasis on ME/CFS in the United States. Chronic conditions among school-aged children likely account for a high proportion of chronic school absenteeism and school withdrawal. Identifying the clinical diagnoses associated with these children is key to strategize intervention plans that would help ensure their health by balancing school attendance and the need of school accommodation and activity participations. Conducting active surveillance among students using school nurses could expedite the diagnosis and management of children who present with symptoms commonly seen in ME/CFS. This involves educating school nurses about ME/CFS and its related syndromes, how to best approach parents and guardians when suggesting the diagnosis, and how to support the educational success of students with chronic diseases. In response to both a needs assessment underscoring state epidemiologists’ need for information on the burden of ME/CFS and a recommendation from the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee (CFSAC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calling for HHS to “educate educators and school nurses on ME/CFS affecting children and adolescents”, the CDC ME/CFS Program created a solicitation for a contract to provide technical services in support of conducting school-based active surveillance of ME/CFS among school children. The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) was awarded a contract in mid-September 2018 for the pilot phase of the school-based active surveillance in children. The pilot phase was to: 1) engage school nurses in the six selected school districts for school-based surveillance, 2) develop an electronic data platform to collect data for this surveillance, and 3) educate nursing professionals about ME/CFS including school nurses that participating in the pilot phase of this surveillance project. National active surveillance in schools for ME/CFS coupled with education of school nurses about ME/CFS could help improve measuring the burden of ME/CFS in children and provide insights for future plans to improve healthcare in children suffering from ME/CFS and other chronic health conditions. In the next phase of this project, we will expand the active surveillance project beyond the pilot schools to additional schools in those pilot states as well as to other states. In this national rollout, school nurses will continue to receive education and technical assistance. Having baseline data about other chronic conditions, will ultimately help inform the interpretation of future data on ME/CFS and guide interventions to help students experiencing health-related academic challenges.