MEMO: Request for Proposals
To: Individual Consultants
From: Luciano Moccia, International Program Coordinator, East Meets West Foundation
Date: 11 September 2008
Re: Baseline Survey of Neonatal Care in Laos

Executive Summary
The East Meets West Foundation is seeking an individual consultant to conduct a baseline survey of newborn medical conditions in Laos. This consultant will also assist EMW with the necessary procedures to establish an official project office in Laos.
The goal of this survey is to determine the current status of neo-natal care in medical facilities in Laos.
Bids are due no later than October 13, 2008, and can be delivered via e-mail to the following address luciano [at] eastmeetswest [dot] org [dot] vn
Only potential candidates will be contacted for interview. Please avoid attachments larger than 1MB.
It is expected that the successful bidder will be able to complete this study in four months. Bids should be comprehensive, with detailed budget, expected compensation and detailed CV of the consultant. Successful bids will be highly cost-effective; EMW is known for being an organization with low overhead and very high benefit to cost ratios.

Terms of Reference
The East Meets West Foundation would like the consultant to conduct a baseline survey by selecting no fewer than 10 pediatric hospitals or hospital departments in Laos and collecting the following data:
a. Current infant mortality on a hospital-by-hospital basis.
b. Number of infants who die each month from all causes, including infection, respiratory distress, exposure, pneumonia, low body temperature, etc.
c. Number of infants suffering from and treated for jaundice each month.
d. List of all neo-natal equipment in each hospital and hours of use each day.
e. Number of doctors trained in neo-natal care.
f. Number of neo-natal hospital beds
g. Other relevant medical data

The successful bidder will undertake this baseline study through required activities such as the following:
1. Data collection at no fewer than 10 hospitals;
2. Meeting with hospital directors, pediatric and neo-natal directors;
3. Reference to key national policies for disaster preparedness and planning;
4. Reference to national policies for neo-natal care.

Key Deliverables are:
1. A report summarizing current statistics with respect to all baseline data.
2. An electronic data collection form that can easily be used to track neo-natal outcomes and equipment usage.
3. A list of all hospitals, local authorities and agencies contacted, with notes on each conversation.
4. Completed paperwork and official documentation and approval for the establishment of a project office.