DATE: May 6, 2025
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: David Luchini, RN, PHN, Director, Department of Public Health
SUBJECT: Memorandum of Understanding with Cal Poly Corporation
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
1. Under Administrative Policy No. 34 for competitive bids or requests for proposals (AP 34), determine that an exception to the competitive bidding requirement under AP 34 is satisfied and a Sole Source Acquisition Request is warranted due to unusual or extraordinary circumstances, and that the best interests of the County would be served by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding with Cal Poly Corporation (Cal Poly) as Cal Poly’s Early Intervention to Promote Cardiovascular Health of Mothers and Children project is solely Cal Poly’s grant study addressing the reduction of cardiovascular disease in birthing persons and children;
2. Approve and authorize the Chairman to execute a Memorandum of Understanding with Cal Poly Corporation to promote and study cardiovascular health among pregnant women and infants, effective upon execution through June 1, 2030 ($0); and
3. Approve and authorize the Director of Public Health to execute future supplemental agreements related to the Cal Poly Corporation Memorandum of Understanding upon approval by Human Resource - Risk Contracts, County Counsel, and County’s Auditor.
REPORT
There is no additional Net County Cost associated with the recommended actions. Approval of the first and second recommended actions will allow the Department of Public Health (Department) to partner with Cal Poly Corporation (Cal Poly) to participate in Cal Poly's Early Intervention to Promote Cardiovascular Health of Mothers and Children (ENRICH) project which aims to determine the effectiveness of combining pre- and postnatal lifestyle interventions within established and sustained evidence-based nursing home visiting programs to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in pregnant women and infants. Approval of the third recommended action will allow the Director of Public Health to sign and execute future supplemental agreements related to the Cal Poly Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) subject to the approval of Human Resource - Risk Contracts (HR Risk), County Counsel, and County’s Auditor. This item is countywide.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
There are no viable alternative actions. Should your Board not approve the recommended actions, the Department will not participate in the ENRICH project and will not be able to provide the necessary education to reduce cardiovascular disease in pregnant women and infants.
SUSPENSION OF COMPETITION/SOLE SOURCE CONTRACT
It is requested that the County find under AP 34 that an exception to the competitive bidding requirement is satisfied, and a sole source is warranted due to unusual or extraordinary circumstances, as the Early Intervention to Promote Cardiovascular Health of Mothers and Children project is solely Cal Poly’s grant study addressing the reduction of cardiovascular disease in birthing persons and children. The recommended action is consistent with the Board’s ongoing assignment of the County’s current economic development responsibilities. The Internal Services Department - Purchasing concurs with the Department’s assessment that this satisfies the exception to the competitive bidding process required by AP 34.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with the recommended action.
DISCUSSION:
The ENRICH project aims to determine the effectiveness of combining pre- and postnatal lifestyle interventions within established and sustained evidence-based nursing home visiting programs to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in Hispanic and non-Hispanic birthing persons and children. The Department is currently implementing the Nurse-Family Partnership home visiting model.
The ENRICH project for California is solely being studied by Cal Poly. Cal Poly, through its Cal Poly Center for Health Research, is the only California agency funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) to promote and study cardiovascular health among pregnant women and infants. The competitive grant is one of seven awarded through the NIH's ENRICH program, with similar grants also awarded to separate research teams in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Missouri, Colorado, and Illinois. The research will entail program development, implementation and evaluation of a new program designed to promote cardiac health in women and children. In collaboration with local home visiting partners, the program seeks to reduce such heart disease risk factors as obesity, sedentary lifestyles, smoking, poor diets, stress and poor sleep. Cal Poly students and faculty studying statistics and world languages and cultures will be collaborating with counterparts at Brown University, a private research institution in Providence, Rhode Island, and other centers and home visiting programs to develop and evaluate how participants respond.
The ENRICH project has outstanding potential for reducing cardiovascular disease risk factors and interrupting the intergenerational transmission of obesity and cardiovascular disease risk factors in socially disadvantaged, Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations at high risk of cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality. Cal Poly's model of enhancing home visiting is very likely to have a sustained impact because it is part of an established home visiting infrastructure that has been in place for several years, ensuring sustainability of the implementation context. The approach has great potential to reduce the healthcare sector and societal health costs associated with cardiovascular disease.
The MOU with Cal Poly contains mutual indemnification language. Approval of the recommended actions will allow the Department to partner with Cal Poly to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in pregnant women and infants by providing the necessary education regarding cardiovascular disease risk factors during Public Health Nurses home visitations. Approval of the recommendations will also allow the Director of Public Health to execute future supplemental agreements related to the MOU subject to the approval of HR Risk, County Counsel, and County’s Auditor.
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
Sole Source Acquisition Request Form
On file with Clerk - MOU with Cal Poly Corporation
CAO ANALYST:
Ron Alexander