Federated Health Data Management Services
Fairness monitor final report: March 27, 2024
Addendum to final report: Not applicable
Submitted to: Director, Fairness Monitoring Program
Submitted by: RFP Solutions Inc.
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Attestation of assurance
The fairness monitor (FM) hereby provides the unqualified assurance statement below concerning the Federated Health Data Management Services (FHDMS) procurement process up to and including the conclusion of the industry engagement phase.
It is our professional opinion that the process we observed or monitored was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.
Original signed by:
Cathryn Kallwitz
Managing Director
RFP Solutions Inc.
Fairness Monitor
Rebecca Toman
Fairness Monitoring Contractor's Representative
Senior Procurement and Fairness Advisor
RFP Solutions Inc.
Clinton Griffiths
Chartered Professional Accountant
Fairness Monitor
Joe Marotta
Fairness Monitor
Activity requirement
RFP Solutions Inc. was engaged on June 1, 2023 as an FM to observe the procurement activities for the FHDMS project, issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) on behalf of Health Canada (HC) under solicitation number WS3910412840. RFP Solutions Inc. is an independent third party with respect to this activity.
This report covers the activities of the FM, during the industry engagement process from June 1, 2023 to March 27 2024.
The federal government is exploring the role of new and existing federated data management solutions in enabling access to health data and information contained in existing or emerging digital systems, while also ensuring Canadians' health data is privacy protected and secure.
PWGSC issued request for information (RFI) (solicitation number WS3910412840) as a first step in a possible multi-step industry engagement process to support informing any future procurement strategy. Through this process, HC and Public Health Agency of Canada were seeking feedback and collaboration from the health innovation sector to better understand whether the procurement of new and existing data-driven technologies could support Canada in collaborating with key partners, including the provinces, territories, and First Nations, Inuit and Metis, with federated data solutions capable of meeting ongoing health data management challenges.
We reviewed all of the information provided and observed all relevant activities.
This report includes:
- our attestation of assurance
- a summary of the scope and objectives of our assignment
- relevant observations from the activities undertaken
Fairness monitoring engagement and observations
In accordance with the terms of our engagement, we:
- familiarized ourselves with the relevant documents
- monitored Canada's progress in its review of RFI responses
- identified fairness-related matters to the contracting authority (CA)
- ensured that responses and actions were reasonable and appropriate
Industry engagement
The RFI was issued to industry via CanadaBuys on March 30, 2023, with a closing date of May 1, 2023. Three amendments to the RFI were issued during the solicitation period to extend the closing date to May 15, 2023 and to respond to industry questions. Eighteen responses were received by the time the RFI closed.
The FM was engaged following the close of the RFI. The FM reviewed the published RFI and amendments to familiarize with the requirements and process. The FM had opportunity to review the RFI responses. No fairness concerns were identified.
Following the close of the RFI, 2 additional organizations were issued a copy of the RFI from the CA. The CA issued the RFI and amendments to each of these organizations. One additional response was received. No fairness concerns were identified.
The CA and HC kept the FM apprised of their review of the RFI responses and potential next steps. The FM provided fairness comments which were considered.
HC also consulted with the CA on protocols to put in place to meet with 1 of the RFI respondents in relation to HC's on-going contractual commitment to review progress on a separate feasibility study being conducted. The FM provided fairness comments on these protocols which were considered. The FM observed a review meeting between HC and the organization on August 1, 2023. The FM subsequently reviewed follow-up questions drafted by HC prior to their issuance to the organization. No fairness concerns were observed.
During the review of RFI responses, the CA received a number of e-mails from respondents inquiring as to the status of the RFI process. The CA prepared draft reply correspondence which was reviewed by the FM prior to its issuance to the RFI respondents. No fairness concerns were identified.
In March, 2024, HC determined that the process would be concluded, with no immediate plans for follow-up activity with industry. A RFI summary of feedback and outcomes report was prepared for issuance to industry, to share Canada's high-level findings and trends from the RFI response review. The FM reviewed the drafts and final summary of feedback and outcomes report prior to its issuance and provided feedback to the CA which was addressed. The RFI summary of feedback and outcomes report was published on CanadaBuys on March 27, 2024. No fairness concerns were identified.
Reference documents
Documents related to solicitation WS3910412840 are available through the project office.
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