Quality Improvement at I-TECH

I-TECH's quality improvement approach emphasizes ongoing assessments of program aims and operations. Country projects apply Continual Quality Improvement (CQI) strategies targeting both programmatic and management activities. Small-scale, practical Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles are used to construct improvement goals, test proposed changes, and implement adjustments, leading to increased quality of operations, service delivery, and care.

In addition to routine monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and CQI, I-TECH designs and implements operations research (the application of research methodology to inform and improve program design and management) and special studies for both I-TECH country programs and our partners. These activities enable us to answer strategic questions concerning the selection and effectiveness of program interventions. The team analyzes and designs evidence-based solutions to increase relevance, access, and scope of HIV
services. Key findings are communicated to managers and leaders to improve programmatic decision making, and are disseminated through publication, when appropriate.

For more information about I-TECH's capacity to conduct operations research or special studies, contact the I-TECH Director of Quality Improvement, Gabrielle O'Malley, PhD, at gomalley@u.washington.edu.

The following are examples of operations research and special studies undertaken by I-TECH in collaboration with our partners.

• Program Evaluation for the Implementation of the Revised Syndromic Management Algorithms for Sexually Transmitted Infections in Two Districts in Botswana
  
• HIV Needs Assessment of Female Sex Workers in Major Towns, Mining Towns, and Along Major Roads in Botswana
  
• Monitoring Patients Lost to Follow-Up (LTFU) in Ethiopia
  
• Qualitative Assessment of Possible Reasons for Refusal of HIV Testing at
  Public Hospital-Based Antenatal Care Clinics in Afar, Amhara, and Tigray Regions in Ethiopia
  
• Ethiopia HIV/ART Nurse Specialist (HANS) Training Program Evaluation
• Evaluation of National HIV Training Program in Tanzania
  
• Patients Lost to Follow-Up: Research into the Tradition of Holy Water and Implications for Patient Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy in Ethiopia
• Evaluation of the Training of Técnicos de Medicina in Mozambique
• Evaluation of Training Capacity in Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT): Jamaica and the Eastern Caribbean
• "It's Our Future Too!": An Evaluation of a School-Based HIV-Prevention Curriculum for Youth in Swaziland
• Effectiveness of Clinical Training for HIV Care in Sub-Saharan Africa—the Infectious Disease Institute (IDI) Training Evaluation