Quality Assurance Specialist

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Health Coordinator, the Quality Assurance Specialist aims to safeguard the quality of healthcare services in the PHCCs and provide technical support provision within PU-AMI’s Health projects. S/he will lead PU-AMI efforts to guarantee the delivery of high-quality and efficient primary healthcare services at the supported PHCCs.S/he is responsible for following up on the key aspects of the health center environment including staff through selected quality performance standards indicators in accordance with the MoPH accreditation. S/he is responsible for continued follow-up and execution of updated MoPH policies and procedures.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS

S/he is responsible for supporting quality assurance of the health services provided by the PHCCs that are supported by PU-AMI. S/he will be in charge of following-up on the quality assurance monitoring and evaluation plan, the aim of which is to support the PHCC achieve accreditation.

S/he will provide feedback based on analysis of key indicators and communicate findings to the teams. S/he will serve as an expert advisor on national standards (i.e. accessibility, appropriateness, continuity of care, effectiveness, efficiency, safety, continuous improvement of performance, etc.) as they pertain to quality improvements and support in the achievement of accreditation.

ENSURE THE REPRESENTATION OF PU-AMI TOWARDS INTERNATIONAL/LOCAL PARTNERS

• Represent PU-AMI with local and international partners;
• Propose improvements to the organization’s relevant standard operational procedures;
• Keep an appropriate record of any delegated duties with partners that impact the base activities at PHCCs’ level;
• Follow-up with all bases and share with partners the indicators set in the project’s logical framework and any other as secondary data and provide feedback if needed.

ENSURE PROVISION OF BEST HEALTH CARE THROUGH MONITORING QUALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT POSITIVE OUTCOMES

• Work with the Health field teams to identify gaps in quality standards and develop implementation plans in the supported PHCCs;
• Lead the development of a set of core standards and tools to be used for improving and monitoring the quality of primary healthcare services;
• Follow up with the Quality Assurance Advisor(s)(s) on the assessment for the primary health care quality baseline, which forms the starting point from which improvements are based;
• Understand the policies and procedures across Primary Health Care services in Lebanon and make sure they are in place and implemented –advising directly supervisors on current status;
• Assess the practical implementation of different programs at health centers by using quality assurance indicators based on MoPH policies and procedures;
• Provide regular updates on quality standards circulated by MOPH. Incorporate these updates into quality standards and guidelines used for monitoring and improvement initiatives in the supported PHCCs;
• Review regularly the performance-based quality audit to ensure appropriateness to context and performance;
• Ensure appropriate implementation of the performance-based quality audit based on the proposal and allocated budget;
• Use the quality improvement master plan to rate the overall performance;
• Oversee the quality monitoring activities provided by the Quality Assurance Advisor(s);
• Meet with the Quality Assurance Advisor(s) on a regular basis to ensure appropriate implementation of quality Improvement plan of the supported PHCCs;
• Review the quality assessment results and action plans for accuracy and appropriateness;
• Develop the plan and the tools for the supervision including the schedule for assessment and focal persons in accordance with the field staff;
• Provide regular updates on Quality Improvement initiatives to the Health Coordinator for donors’ reporting purposes;
• Conduct periodical lessons learnt sessions to address challenges, capitalize good practices and highlight success stories taking into account the expectations of the community and the primary health care workers;
• Collaborate with the Medical Specialist(s) regarding archiving system and overall organization of medical records composition;
• Review and compile the monthly and quarterly reporting from the bases.

CAPACITY BUILDING/TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDGE

• Ensure that initial and continuous training programs for field quality personnel are implemented and maintained.;
• Provide support on the technical aspects of managing the Primary Health Information System;
• Identify quality related training needs for the supported PHCCs. Collaborate with the Health Coordinator, Deputy Health Coordinator and Health Project Managers to develop plans for the roll out of capacity building trainings on standards and protocols.

CAPITALIZATION/INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE BUILDING

• Technical capitalization works for the whole mission in collaboration with the Medical Specialists, Health Coordinator and Health Project Manager;
• Develop an understanding of Lebanon situation (i.e. beneficiaries, needs, political context, and strategy of intervention, etc.).

The tasks and responsibilities defined in this job description are non-exhaustive and can evolve depending on the project’s needs.

MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS

Language Skills: Fluent in English and Arabic (speaking/reading/writing).

Education Degree: Health-related background (Nursing, Pharmacy, or MD), minimum experience of 2 years with training in health systems/quality assurance/public health (a master's degree is a plus); at least two years of experience working in the Lebanese health system mainly quality standards and accreditations in addition of being a national surveyor is a plus.

Work experience:

• At least 3-5 years of experience in NGOs;
• Knowledge of the project cycle and development of logical frameworks; ability to monitor key quality assurance indicators 
• Computer Skills: Excellent knowledge of MS office software including Word, Excel, Outlook, HIS MoPH

Other requirements:

• Valid driving license;
• Management and pedagogical skills;
• Innovative, able to mobilize/motivate and coach personnel;
• Self-motivating and working with minimal supervision is required
• Good knowledge of Lebanon districts’ geography, willing to travel locally;
• Literacy in reporting;
• Knowledge of Health Information Systems use in different project of MoPH is an asset.

Assets

Interest:

• Work in relief, interest for social issues;
• Strong motivation to help people in need.

Transversal skills

• Excellent communication, conflict solving and diplomacy skills to manage relationship in potentially tense situations;
• Understanding of the political situation in the area;
• Ability to analyze and suggest improvements of the activities;
• Ability to adapt or change priorities according to the changing situation within the mission or the organization itself;
• Well organized and hard worker;
• Able to manage stress and pressure;
• Able to check information,
• Logical;
• Neutral.

Office/ Regular field visits (40% of the time) to support projects at short notice.