Autopsy transportation services for Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

Please Note: The Procurement Entity is “Health Canada” and the End user is “Public Health Agency Canada” . The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) requires specialized services for transportation of human remains, to support national surveillance of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Delivery of the services requires transportation of the remains of patients suspected to have died of CJD from their place of death to a hospital pathology facility, where an autopsy is performed, then to a funeral services facility where the remains are returned to the custody of the patient’s family. The service supports the ongoing public health mandate of the PHAC Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance System (CJDSS), the primary operational objective of which is to identify and characterize all cases of CJD that occur in Canada. CJD, a rare infectious disease of high importance in public health, is nationally notifiable and provincially reportable in Canada. Definitive diagnosis of CJD requires post mortem pathological examination of the brain. In keeping with its responsibilities for national surveillance, prevention and control of infectious diseases, PHAC funds and coordinates the majority of diagnostic autopsies in Canada where a suspicion of CJD is present. Given the infectious nature of CJD, all remains must be handled to ensure staff safety during collection, transportation and delivery of remains. The CJDSS and the Contractor must remain in close contact to ensure that specific precautions related to prion diseases are addressed. This includes but is not limited to the use of personal protective equipment when handling bodies, and enclosing the remains in body bags or other containers as required under applicable provincial and territorial regulations. It will be the responsibility of the Contractor to ensure that all transportation activities are conducted in a manner that adheres to applicable laws and regulations for the handling of human remains, and the protection of personal information.