Call for Proposals: Compile an Inventory of Current Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) Practices and Health Care Services for GARs Across Canada

Transcription

1 Call for Proposals: Compile an Inventory of Current Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) Practices and Health Care Services for GARs Across Canada Objective: Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), Resettlement Division, wishes to fund a project to compile an inventory of the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) across Canada, as well as of health care services available to Government-Assisted Refugees (GARs) upon arrival. The RAP component of the inventory will outline what services are available and how they are being delivered. It will also identify promising practices undertaken by service provider organizations (SPOs). The health care component will focus on capacity-building initiatives undertaken by RAP SPOs to ensure that GARs receive adequate health services as soon as possible after arrival. This inventory will be a useful resource for SPOs to help them improve their service delivery and will be an aid in future redesign of the program, and as such it will help improve services for RAP clients. Background: The Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) is a contribution program that came into effect in 1998 which supports the resettlement of Government-Assisted Refugees (GARs). The program provides eligible refugees selected abroad with immediate resettlement assistance, orientation services, housing and income support upon arrival in Canada. Approximately 80% of the RAP budget goes towards income support payments and the remaining 20% is contributed to a Canada-wide network of SPOs that operate reception facilities that attend to the immediate and essential needs of the refugees upon arrival. Services provided by SPOs include: meeting at point of entry and transportation to temporary accommodations; ensuring immediate essential needs are me t; information on, and links to, mandatory federal and provincial programs; assistance with finding permanent accommodation; assistance with acquiring a basic knowledge of everyday North American life skills; orientation sessions on financial and non-financial information; individual client needs assessment and referrals to other settlement programs. There are currently 23 SPOs across Canada that provide RAP services. Many have developed their own in-house systems for dealing with increased demands they face. These demands include higher-needs GARs who require more life skills training than in the past, tight rental markets in many cities, the failure of RAP rates to keep up with 1

2 inflation. CIC plans to undertake a redesign of RAP in order to regain effectiveness and sustainability. As a client group, GARs generally have very low household income, low levels of education, minimal life-skills suited for North American context, rarely speak one of Canada s official languages and illiteracy in their native language is common. GAR health issues have been identified as an area of serious need by CIC staff and practitioners in the refugee resettlement community. The fact that the excessive demand provision of the immigration legislation no longer applies to refugees, coupled with the major increase in refugees arriving from protracted camp-based situations, has resulted in significant numbers of GARs arriving with serious medical needs. It is recognized that mental/physical health problems are a major barrier to successful settlement and integration into Canadian society and also have the potential to create serious public health/public perception problems. For more information on CIC s Refugee Resettlement programs, visit CIC s website at: Tasks and Scope: The time period to be covered by this inventory is January 2004 to the present. For funding-specific items and issues the timeframe should be fiscal year 2004/05 (April 1, 2004 through March 31, 2005). It is anticipated that the RAP component of the inventory will contain two distinct components, one that is CIC-specific and the other that is SPO-specific. Examples of the type of information to be collected are as follows: A. CIC component income support what rates and allowances are given and what do they include (national entitlements); differences between RAP rates/allowances and provincial Social Assistance rates/allowances (including employment clawback of income earned, special diet allowances, National Child Benefit.); administration of start-up (cheque or standing offer, etc.) ; intake process and initial cheque; contracting with SPOs (fiscal or calendar year basis); CIC delivery of orientation sessions; staff training on RAP; destining processes, practices and statistics; secondary migration of RAP clients; client monitoring procedures; quality assurance procedures; resources allocated by CIC to the program (FTEs, O&M); B. SPO component 2

3 each SPO to self-identify 2 to 4 local practices they consider promising practices ; client assessment and referral processes; meet and greet procedures and services; services offered to GAR children/particular needs of children; how orientation is delivered (e.g. classroom format, delivery assistance tools being used); current practices for accessing and referring to health services; description of reception centre and hotel models for temporary accommodation, including number and size of rooms, average length of stay, etc.; how are unexpected arrivals handled; types of client profile analysis being done by SPOs; how arranging for permanent accommodation is done (e.g. use of housing coordinators, landlord networks); external resources leveraged/mobilized to support RAP delivery(e.g., other funding partners, support from United Way agencies); use of volunteer help; secondary migration of RAP clients; client monitoring procedures; gaps in transition from resettlement services to settlement service e.g. transferring from RAP counsellor to ISAP counsellor; quality assurance procedures; use of icams data entry procedures; level of data and case management employed; computer systems (other than icams) in use. For the health care component of the inventory, specific categories of programs/initiatives should include: SPOs to self-identify local promising practices to address the primary health care needs of GARs; Description of health promotion/intervention programs directed at GARs (e.g., routine physical examinations, referrals to specialists, assistance with finding a family doctor, communicable disease screening, health promotion and disease prevention activities, well-baby services, family planning and health counselling). Describe program model, goals/objective, funding source(s), staff arrangements, partnership(s) developed, self-identified weaknesses/challenges and successes/strengths; Networks developed with health service providers including dental, mental health, pharmacy services and other services; Procedures and actions used when IFH coverage is not yet available (emergency medical issues upon arrival); Extended health care services such as homecare, prescription drugs and dental work that are not covered by IFH but available to GARs through other 3

4 mechanisms (provincial programs, voluntary services, United Way organizations); Community services for amputees, the blind and the deaf. Include affordable or subsidized sources of assistance such as prostheses, guide-dogs, hearing-aids, wheel-chairs and specialized transportation. Methodology: Information should be gathered from CIC-NHQ, CIC regions and RAP SPOs by means of telephone, and other methods, which may include on-site visits. Deliverables: Final report that includes inventory list(s), statistics, charts and graphs, best practices, lessons learned and Executive Summary. Nov. 30 Outline/Table of Contents Jan st draft inventory report Feb nd draft inventory report Mar. 31 Final report Constraints: The proposed timeframe is November 15, 2005 to March 31, The deadline for completion is March 31, A budget ceiling of $95,000 has been set for this project. The successful applicant will be required to maintain accurate financial records and receipts for all expenses incurred in the course of this project. The successful applicant will be reimbursed by CIC for actual expenses incurred only, upon receipt of accurate claim forms, and will be subject to a monitoring of financial records relating to this project. Proposals Must: 1. Include an executive summary. 2. Demonstrate the applicant s particular expertise to conduct this type of project. 3. Identify sub-contractors and partners. Their role must be clearly specified, and their qualifications demonstrated in the proposal. 4. Indicate the applicant s willingness to work cooperatively and consultatively with CIC and with SPOs. 4

5 5. Provide details of past projects the applicant has completed on time and within budget, and include a sample of one product developed of a similar nature to this project. 6. Include two references from past projects, with contact information. 7. Include resumes and/or the organizational portfolio of the principal applicant, as well as all partners and sub-contractors. 8. Include a detailed budget for the project (including itemization of budget for wage costs, employee benefits, per diem rates, travel expenses, other itemized production costs, etc.) 9. Include a detailed workplan with milestones and timelines for achieving each, with a final deliverable date to the contractor on or before March 31, The Successful Applicant: The successful applicant will possess the required technical expertise in all areas to complete the project, and possess some knowledge of the resettlement sector, RAP and/or SPOs. It is recognized that one applicant may not possess all the required skills, knowledge and expertise, and therefore partnerships and/or subcontracting arrangements are encouraged. However, the primary applicant is required to have strong project management skills, to ensure the success of the project. The primary applicant is responsible for the performance of all partners and subcontractors. The Selection Process: All complete proposals that are received by the deadline will be reviewed by CIC using a standard Proposal Evaluation tool. This tool will be used to evaluate the proposal on project content, budget and cost-effectiveness, and management capacity and expertise. The application package must include: Three hard-copies of the completed proposal. Electronic version of the proposal (in MSWord) on CDROM or via to Maryka.Nichol@cic.gc.ca Send Proposals To: Ron Parent Manager Resettlement Assistance Citizenship and Immigration Canada 17 th floor JETS 5

6 365 Laurier Ave. W. Ottawa, ON K1A 1L1 Deadline for Submission of Proposals: October 31, 2005 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time Proposals received after this deadline will not be considered. Questions: All proposal inquiries should be directed by to: The deadline for questions is October 21, If you wish to receive the list of questions and answers, send an to by October 21 stating your intention to apply and requesting that the questions and answers be sent to you via return . All questions and answers will be shared with all potential applicants via on October 26,