TENDER DOCUMENTS FOR CONSULTANCY SERVICES FOR:

developmentand facilitation of adaptation of diagnosis related groups and ambulatory patient groups based payment mechanism for the proposed national health insurance scheme in uganda

ONE LOT WITH 2 ITEMS:

ITEM 1: DEVELOPMENT OF DIAGNOSIS RELATED GROUPS (DRGs) AND AMBULATORY PATIENT GROUPS (APGs) BASED PAYMENT MECHANISM

AND

ITEM 2: DEVELOPMENT OF A SOFTWARE FOR THE USE OF THE DRGS AND APGS

UNDER BELGO-UGANDAN STUDY AND CONSULTANCY FUND

(UGA/01/004)

TENDER N° UGA323

AUGUST 2017

1

Preface

The Study and Consultancy Fund (the Fund) is a funding envelope that was put aside under the Belgium-Uganda partnership, aimed at enhancing the institutional capacity in Uganda in support of the prioritized sectors of the Ugandan-Belgian Cooperation on the one hand and the preparation of the Indicative Development Cooperation Program and the implementation of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness on the other hand.

The Belgian Technical Cooperation (BTC) as the agency responsible for the implementation of the general cooperation agreement between Uganda and Belgium, oversees the Fund’s execution on behalf of Belgium. The Republic of Uganda on the other hand, has entrusted Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development with the supervision of arrangements related to the execution of this Fund. The two entities (MoFPED and BTC) are therefore responsible for realization of the Fund’s objective.

The Fund is implemented partly under the joint responsibility of Government of Uganda and BTC (co-management) and direct management by BTC (own management).

The Fund finances various studies that will contribute to the general objective and also aligned to the priority sectors of the Belgium-Uganda cooperation. These studies are introduced by different government of Uganda Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) (see Terms of Reference).

The management of the Fund is guided by:

  • The terms and conditions contained in the Specific Agreement signed between the two countries,
  • The internal rules, processes and mandates applicable within BTC,
  • The Public Procurement and Disposal Authority (PPDA) Regulations of Uganda.

Structure:

Part 1: Instructions to consultants

Part 2: Terms of Reference

Part 3: Contract form

Part 4: General conditions

Part 5: Special conditions

Part 6: Forms

  1. Identification form,
  2. Code of ethical conduct,
  3. Proposal submission form,
  4. List of similar assignments,
  5. Key expert(s) table,
  6. Organisation and methodology,
  7. Financial proposal (lump-sum contract).

Part 1

Instructions to consultants

Preparation of proposals: You are requested to quote for these services by submitting separate technical and financial proposals for the consultancy, as detailed below. The standard forms presented in Part 6 may be retyped for completion but the bidder is responsible for their accurate reproduction. Bidders are bound to strictly use the application format in part 3 of this tender document. You are advised to carefully read the complete tender documentsbefore preparing your proposal.

Pre-proposal meeting:A pre-proposal meeting will be held onMonday 21stAugust 2017 in the BTC Uganda boardroom, starting at 10:00am, at Plot 1B Lower Kololo Terrace, Kampala, Uganda to seek and provide clarifications about the tender.

Documents for preliminary evaluation: Bidders will submit the following documents for preliminary assessment of the consultant(s):

  • a copy of their trading license or equivalent and or a copy of any other Certificate of registration with relevant bodies;
  • evidence of fulfilment of obligations to pay taxes;
  • the duly signed identification form (Annex 1);
  • the duly signed code of ethical conduct (Annex 2);
  • the duly signed proposal submission form (Annex 3);
  • the duly completed list of similar assignments (Annex 4);

Preparation of technical proposal: Using a standard format annexed, the technical proposal should contain the following documents and information:

  • the duly completed key expert(s) table (Annex 5);
  • the CVs of the key expert(s);
  • the duly completed organisation and methodology; (Annex 6)

Preparation of financial proposal: The financial proposal should contain the following documents and information:

  • the duly signed financial proposal lump-sum contract (Annex 7).

Information: The awarding of this contract is coordinated Ms. Rose Athieno Kato, Supervising Assistant (BTC). Throughout this procedure, all contacts between the contracting authority and the (possible) bidders about the present contract will exclusively pass through this service / this person. (Possible) bidders are prohibited to contact the contracting authority any other way with regards to this contract, unless otherwise stipulated in these tender documents. Questions shall be addressed in writing to: .

Validity of proposals: The proposal validity required is 90 calendar daysfrom the deadline for the submission of tenders.

Sealing and marking of proposals: The technical and financial proposals should be sealed in separate envelopes, both clearly marked with the project number above, the bidder’s name, BTC address below and either “Technical proposal” or “Financial proposal” as appropriate. Submission must be one original and two copies clearly labelled ‘’copy’ or ‘’original”. This is applicable to both financial and technical proposals.Both envelopes should be enclosed in a single outer envelope, clearly marked with the project number above, the bidder’s name and BTC address. All envelopes should be sealed in such a manner that opening and resealing cannot be achieved undetected.

Submission of proposals: Proposals should be submitted to the address below, no later than Friday, 1st September 2017 at 12:00Noon at the latest. Late proposals will be rejected.

Address: Supervising Officer (MoH) & Supervising Assistant (BTC)

Tender N°UGA323

c/o Belgian Development Agency, BTC

Lower Kololo Terrace, Plot 1B

Kampala/Uganda

Opening of proposals: The proposals will be opened internally by MoH, MoFPED and BTC. Bidders’ representatives are not permitted to attend the opening. Financial proposals will be kept unopened and the evaluators shall have no access to financial information until the detailed technical evaluation is concluded.

Evaluation of proposals:The evaluation of proposals will use the methodology as detailed below: Proposals failing at each of the Stages will be eliminated and not considered at the next stage.

  1. Preliminary examination:

a)to determine the eligibility and the administrative compliance on pass/fail basis.

b)to determine if the consultant(s) have the minimum qualifications indicated on pass/fail basis.

  1. Technical evaluation:70 points

Proposals shall be awarded scores out of the maximum number of points indicated below for each of the following criteria which will be expanded during the evaluation:

Organisation and methodology (see form 6) / Max. Points (100)
Methodology / 60
Understanding of ToR: / 15
Strategy / 30
Work plan & timetable of activities / 15
Key expert(s) / 40
Lead consultants (2) / 25
Other consultants (2) / 15

The minimum technical score required to pass the technical evaluation is 70% points. This score for the detailed technical evaluation will be calculated out of 70 points.

  1. Financial evaluation:30 points

With regards to the ‘price’ criterion, the following formula will be used:

Points tender A = total price of all items of lowest tender * 30

total price of all items of tender A

Currency: Proposals may be priced in Ugandan Shillings or any other freely convertible currency and in up to two currencies. The currency of evaluation will be Ugandan shillings. Proposals in other currencies will be converted to this currency for evaluation purposes only, using the exchange rates published by the Bank of Uganda on the date of the submission deadline.

Post-qualification of the consultant(s): The contracting authority reserves the right to examine the documentary evidence of the consultant’s qualifications or any other elements as presented by the consultant and using any preferred approach.

Negotiations: Negotiations may be held with the best evaluated consultant(s) following the evaluation of proposals. The cost of any negotiations or technical discussions shall be borne by the respective parties themselves.

Best evaluated bid: The best evaluated bid shall be one with the best combination of technical and financial proposals and shall be recommended for award of contract.

Award of contract: Award of contract shall be by letter of notification of award followed by a contract agreement signed between the successful bidder and the Study and Consultant Fund Director from Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development.

Right to reject: MoFPED and BTC reserve the right to accept or reject any proposal or to cancel the bidding process and reject all proposals at any time prior to contract award.

PART 2:

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Item 1: Terms of Reference (ToRs) for Supporting the Task Force for the Development of the DRGs and APGs for Uganda Study

Background

The health sector in Uganda is undertaking several health financing reforms over the medium term. Key among these reforms is the operationalization of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). It is envisaged that under the NHIS fund there will be provisions for prospective payment to accredited providers. The health sector now desires to develop and facilitate adaptationof Diagnosis related Groups (DRGs) and Ambulatory Patient Groups (APGs) for Uganda and use these for making prospective payments to providers under the NHIS fund. These DRGs and APGs for Uganda may also form the basis for resource allocation to Hospitals under the Results Based financing framework.

The Ministry of Health has applied for support from the Belgo-Uganda Study and Consultancy Fund to undertake the exercise and intends to apply some of the resources to acquire a health financing expert(s) as a short-term consultant(s) to support the study Task Force in implementing the study.

Objective

Objectives of the consultancy will include:

  1. Provision of technical support to the study team
  2. Capacity building (on job training) for the study team
  3. Ensure timely delivery of study outputs

Scope of Work

Working hand in hand with the study Task Force the consultant(s) will be expected to do the following;

  • Drafting of an inception report for the study clearly outlining how the study objectives will be met and the tools to be used during the study and ensure the study report is approved and adopted.
  • Collection and analysis of data for the study.
  • Support task force in arranging for and participate in the study tour
  • Production of the draft DRGs and APGs report for Uganda restricting patient characteristics used in the definitions to those readily available in Uganda.
  • Development of Health facility reporting tools to feed into the DRGs and APGs for Uganda
  • Development of user manuals for DRGs and APGs
  • Preparation of the final report of the DRGs and APGs for Uganda study
  • Provision of user requirements to enable IT consultant(s) to develop relevant software for DRGs and APGs for Uganda
  • Any other duties/responsibilities incidental to the study

Methodology

The consultant(s) will work closely with the officer nominated as the person responsible for the study and under the supervision of the commissioner Health Services Planning.

Timetable

The study is expected to take place between September and December 2017.

Expected output

The final output will be DRGs and APGs for Uganda piloted with at least one health insurance firm.

Expertise required

2 experts will be required for this assignment.

Qualifications

  1. Lead Consultant:An advanced degree from a recognized University, preferably; Public Health, Health policy, Health services Management or an equivalent. Having a medical background or experience with the health sector will be an added advantage.

Skills

Analytical skills

  1. Report writing
  2. Quantification techniques
  3. Expert judgment
  4. Medical Coding
  5. Public Health
  6. Research Methods

Experience

  • Experience of over 5 years in the mentioned fields
  • Knowledge of health issues an added advantage
  • Having carried out consultancy work in the health sector in Uganda.
  1. Other Consultant: A degree in Degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics or related field. Post Graduate training costing/cost accounting or Health Economics will be an added advantage.

Skills

  1. Analytical skills
  2. Report writing
  3. Quantification techniques
  4. Expert judgment
  5. Costing/Cost accounting

Experience

  • Experience of at least 3 years in the mentioned fields
  • Knowledge of Uganda’s Health system

Duration

60 Consultancy days

Reporting

The consultants will report to Commissioner Health Services (Planning) and working closely with the officer responsible for the study.

Item 2: Terms of References for Developing a Software for Use of the DRGs and APGs for Uganda

Background

The health sector in Uganda is undertaking several health financing reforms over the medium term. Key among these reforms is the operationalization of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). It is envisaged that under the NHIS fund there will be provisions for prospective payment to accredited providers. The health sector now desires to develop and facilitate adaptation of Diagnosis related Groups (DRGs) and Ambulatory Patient Groups (APGs) for Uganda and use these for making prospective payments to providers under the NHIS fund. These DRGs and APGs for Uganda may also form the basis for resource allocation to Hospitals under the Results Based financing framework.

The Ministry of Health has applied for support from the Belgo-Uganda Study and Consultancy Fund to undertake the exercise and intends to apply some of the resources to acquire anInformation Technology expert as a Lead short term consultant supported by an IT specialist as a consultant to develop software that will support use of DRGs and APGs in Uganda.

Objective

Objectives of the consultancy will include:

  1. Create a standardized secure database/software for use of DRGs and APGs in Uganda based on reporting requirements for NHIS for purposes of data storage, preservation, analysis/queries, transfer/sharing and report generation.
  2. Support Ministry of Health staff in developing needed competencies for using and maintaining data base.
  3. Develop recommendations to inform the development of an overarching, internal, secure and web-enabled data bank which can maintain health facility data across multiple health providers allowing for data storage, privacy control, preservation, analysis/queries. visualization and transfer/sharing.

Methodology/Scope of Work

The consultants will work closely with the study task force and under supervision of the commissioner Health Services Planning. They will be expected to;

  • Collect user requirements for the software from the task force members
  • Develop a written plan for the development of the database/software specific to the needs of the study/NHIS
  • Design and develop appropriate software for the DRGs and APGs for Uganda
  • Link the developed software with the facility reporting tools for DRGs and APGs
  • Train the study task force members to operate developed software
  • Pilot the software with at least one health insurance firm
  • Write a program for cleaning and uploading data reported from the health facilities
  • Develop a standard operating procedures manual

Timetable

The consultancy is expected to take place between Novemberand December 2017.

Expected output

The final output will be software to support use of DRGs and APGs for Uganda piloted with at least one health insurance firm.

Qualifications (Lead Consultant)

  • An advanced degree from a recognized University in a relevant field (Computer science, Data/Information Management, Information Technology, software engineering) or an equivalent.
  • Minimum of 5 years related to database development and archiving including use of web-based platforms
  • Excellent communication and writing skills.

Skills

  1. Analytical skills
  2. Software development skills
  3. Expert judgment
  4. Experience with Web-enabled software

Experience

  • Experience of over 5 years in the mentioned fields
  • Having worked on software in the health sector will be an added advantage

Qualifications (Other Consultant)

  • A degree from a recognized University in a relevant field (Computer science, Data/Information Management, Information Technology, software engineering) or an equivalent.
  • Minimum of 3 years related to database development
  • Excellent communication and writing skills.

Skills

  1. Analytical skills
  2. Software development skills
  3. Expert judgment

Experience

  • Experience of over 3 years in the mentioned fields
  • Experience with Web-enabled software

Duration

33 Consultancy days

Reporting

The consultants will report to Commissioner Health Services (Planning) and working closely with the officer responsible for the study

PART 3:

CONTRACT FORM

For Lump Sum Contracts

Contract reference: 323

Contract title: Development Facilitation of Adaptation of Diagnosis Related Groups and Ambulatory Patient Groups Based Payment Mechanism for the Proposed National Health Insurance Scheme in Uganda

This Contract is made this…………. day of the month of ……………………… between ………..,………………….., Fund Director of the Belgo-Ugandan Study and Consultancy Fund, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, P.O. Box 8147, Kampala, Uganda (hereinafter called the “Contracting Authority”) and ……………………………………….. of …………… hereinafter called the “Consultant”).

WHEREAS

(a)the Contracting Authority has requested the Consultant to provide certain consultancy services (hereinafter called the “Services”) as defined herein and attached to this Contract;

(b)the Consultant having represented to the Contracting Authority that it has the required professional skills, personnel and technical resources, has agreed to provide the Services on the terms and conditions set forth in this Contract.

NOW THEREFORE the parties hereto agree as follows:

1.The documents forming the Contract shall be as stated in and in the order of priority stated in the General Conditions of Contract.

2.The mutual rights and obligations of the Contracting Authority and the Consultant shall be as set forth in the Contract, in particular:

(a)The Consultant shall carry out the Services in accordance with the provisions of the Contract; and

(b)the Contracting Authority shall pay the Consultant the lump-sum contract price of ______without VAT or such other sum as may become payable under the provisions of the Contract, at the times and in the manner prescribed by the Contract.