Health Quality Council of Alberta - Request for Proposal - Identification of healthcare staff experiences in continuing care

BACKGROUND For over a decade, the HQCA has collected the experiences of residents and family members in type A and B continuing care homes (i.e., facilities previously referred to as long-term care and designated supportive living sites, respectively1) and in home and community care. Insights from the HQCA surveys and qualitative studies have helped continuing care operators, health system partners, and people living in Alberta to understand resident and family member experiences in these homes. To provide a more complete picture of continuing care homes as well as home and community care in the province it is essential to also understand the experiences of the continuing care workforce. Understanding and meeting the needs of the workforce in continuing care homes has been at the center of many recommendations brought forward by the 2021 FBCC Review,2 and nationally by the Royal Society of Canada in 20203 and 2024.4 A central theme to these recommendations is to improve the ‘quality of work life’ for continuing care staff. This includes such considerations as staffing levels, job satisfaction, intention to leave, mental and physical health, wellbeing, burnout, work engagement, and work conditions, some of which have been associated with impacts on resident outcomes. The HQCA is seeking to engage a consultant with qualitative expertise, to schedule, conduct, analyze, and summarize individual and group interviews and/or focus groups with continuing care operators and frontline staff. Data generated through this research will inform the development of initiatives, programs, and policies to support continuing care operators and staff. Further, it will offer insights into predictors and drivers of high-quality care. Reports for this qualitative study may be provided to operators, healthcare delivery organizations, and ultimately the Alberta public via the HQCA’s website. In addition, knowledge and insights gathered through these processes could be used by the HQCA to design and/or inform content of other provider experience efforts. The consultant will be responsible for scheduling, data collection, transcription, thematic analysis of focus groups/interviews, will explore differences and similarities within and between sites, and writing of a report summarizing findings. The consultant will deliver an interim summary of findings to the HQCA and Alberta Ministry of Health by November 22, 2024 and final report of findings by February 28, 2025. PROJECT DESCRIPTION A qualitative collection of provider and operator experiences will be conducted to assess potential workforce recruitment and retention interventions, and to understand other considerations (e.g., equity, diversity, inclusion, etc.) of staff experience in continuing care homes. Suggested method and recruitment in continuing care sites (to be confirmed after literature review) Within four sites - Continuing care home administrators and frontline staff Focus groups and/or 1-1 interviews ▪ 1-2 focus groups (max 8 participants per group) ▪ 1-1 interviews to supplement focus groups to achieve target of 10 participants per site ▪ Up to 8 focus groups ▪ Up to 40 interviews PROJECT ACTIVITIES AND DELIVERABLES ▪ The vendor will meet with the HQCA project team to clarify the scope and requirements of the project. ▪ The vendor will provide summaries of progress in bi-weekly meetings with the project lead. ▪ The vendor will develop a research protocol for the gathering and analysis of information to ensure rigor. ▪ The HQCA project team will lead and submit an ARECCI review, including a second opinion review if required. ▪ The vendor will develop project materials (e.g., information letter and informed consent, recruitment posters, resources for participants), and interview guides, based on best practice. The HQCA will review, provide edits, and will sign-off on these materials prior to distribution. The vendor will regularly update the HQCA project team on any other protocols or documents produced for this project, and the HQCA may ask to review these upon request. ▪ The HQCA will purposively select sites that are willing and able to participate in the project, and that represent a variety of key characteristics (e.g., both type A and type B; rural and urban). The HQCA will facilitate introductions between the consultant and site leadership teams. Thereafter, the consultant will be expected to take ownership of fostering and maintaining relationships with each site as the consultant recruits participants and collects data. ▪ The vendor will submit an interim report to the HQCA project team by November 22, 2024. The report will summarize themes identified from the first 40-50% of focus groups/interviews. ▪ The vendor will submit a final report to the HQCA project team by February 28, 2025. The report should summarize themes identified from all focus groups/interviews. ▪ The vendor must submit all transcribed focus groups/interviews (consent to audio-record granted by participant), or notes (if audio-recording is refused by the participant or if transcribed focus groups/interviews cannot be anonymized to protect the confidentiality of participants), to the project team on a bi-weekly basis. All anonymized transcripts and notes should be submitted by February 28, 2025. The HQCA project team will provide the vendor with an anonymization guide REQUIREMENTS FOR QUOTATION Although not limited or restricted to, all quotations must include the following elements, which may be used in selecting the successful bidder: ▪ Demonstrated understanding of the project. ▪ Proposed approach, including recognition of any difficulties associated with the project, and plans to address such difficulties. ▪ Experience and capability of personnel in managing and doing this work, especially in conducting qualitative interviewing, thematic analysis, and trauma and healing informed practices, putting relational ethics at the forefront. The HQCA will support the sourcing of professional mental health support for participants in distress, accessible throughout the data collection phase. ▪ Proposed project management and data security plan. ▪ Components of the work to be provided as sub-totals and as billable milestones in the proposal. This includes a list of tasks with associated hours, hourly rate(s) and anticipated expenses, as well as the total project cost. ▪ Proposed work schedule. ▪ Previous related project references. PROPOSAL PROCESS While the HQCA has made every considerable effort to ensure that accurate information is contained in this request for proposal (RFP), the information is supplied solely as a guideline. The information is not guaranteed or warranted to be accurate, nor is it necessarily comprehensive or exhaustive. Nothing in this RFP is intended to relieve the potential contractor from forming their own opinions and conclusions in respect of the matters addressed in this RFP. Please note that the lowest price proposal will not necessarily be selected. Only where two or more proposals offer work judged to be of equal value, quality, and reliability, will cost be the determining factor. The HQCA reserves the right not to award a contract to the highest evaluated proposal or to any proposal. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION Bidders must accept and acknowledge that, in connection with their performance of the work under any resulting contract, they may have access to certain information, data, and materials that are confidential to the HQCA and which are identified as confidential or would be understood by the parties, exercising reasonable business judgment, to be confidential (“Confidential Information”). Bidders accept that they shall not use, except to perform their obligations under any resulting contract, any Confidential Information. TIMELINE Anticipated schedule is outlined below. Proposals due - August 30, 2024 Successful respondent contacted and contract awarded - September 9, 2024 Project planning - September, 2024 Ethics approval (HQCA) - September, 2024 Recruitment survey to identify eligible participants (HQCA) - September-October, 2024 Focus groups/interviews and analysis - September-November, 2024 Interim report - November 22, 2024 Continue focus groups/interviews and analysis - November-February, 2024-2025 Report submitted to HQCA - February 28, 2025 Each bidder will receive acknowledgement of receipt of their proposal via email. QUESTIONS AND SUBMISSION Submissions and any questions regarding the intent or content of this RFP should be directed to: Karis.barker@hqca.ca