Quality Improvement Assistant

Client referral, retention and continuity of care:

• Within the assigned cluster, track community-to-facility and facility-to-facility referrals using approved project and government tools, and confirm that referred clients reach the receiving facility, receive the required service and, where necessary, complete onward referral.
• Support functional referral, counter-referral and feedback mechanisms between community structures and health facilities, including timely communication of referral outcomes and follow-up actions.
• Track missed appointments, incomplete referrals and clients at risk of loss to follow-up, and support timely re-engagement through approved community and facility channels while maintaining consent, confidentiality and safeguarding standards.
• Identify barriers affecting access, referral completion, retention and continuity of care, and promptly escalate unresolved issues to the Quality Improvement Specialist or relevant technical lead.

Implementation and quality improvement support:

• Conduct routine supportive monitoring visits across assigned facilities and communities with relevant project staff, and monitor the implementation, integration and fidelity of G-ANC, FPNC, G-PNC, nutrition, POCUS, PMH, quality-of-care interventions, referral systems and other approved HARMONY Care approaches.
• Use approved checklists, observation guides, dashboards, run charts and action trackers to identify gaps, document findings and follow up agreed corrective actions with facility and community teams.
• Support facility teams to implement quality improvement actions related to service readiness, respectful care, client flow, documentation, client experience and continuity of care.
• Monitor the availability and appropriate use of required registers, job aids, equipment and implementation materials, and report shortages, non-functionality or other constraints promptly.

Community-facility coordination and demand generation:

• Provide support in strengthening coordination among supported facilities, community-based health workers, ward development committees, community leaders and other approved community structures involved in mobilisation, referral and follow-up.
• Support demand-generation activities that provide accurate information and link eligible women, mothers, newborns and infants to appropriate HARMONY Care services and scheduled contacts.
• Maintain updated directories and referral maps for assigned communities, facilities and higher-level referral points, and compile feedback on access, care experience and continuity for action by relevant technical leads.

Data, planning, coordination and reporting:

• Collate and update approved client-tracking, referral, implementation and quality improvement tools; conduct basic completeness and consistency checks; and work with the MEL team to support timely data availability and submission.
• Maintain assigned programme-management tools for the designated cluster, including facility and stakeholder directories, activity trackers, scorecards and action logs, and document implementation challenges, lessons and promising practices.
• Support preparation of workplans, field schedules, activity plans and related budgets; track implementation progress and action points; and escalate delays, risks and unresolved issues.
• Contribute to routine reports, presentations, meeting notes, human-interest stories and technical materials, and support meetings, workshops, field visits, stakeholder coordination and organised records management.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree, Higher National Diploma or recognised professional qualification in Nursing, Midwifery, Community Health, Public Health, Health Education or another relevant health-related field.
• A clinical or community-health background is preferred.
• Minimum of three years of relevant post-qualification experience supporting MNCH, community health, quality improvement, health-facility strengthening, referral systems or related public health programmes.
• Demonstrated experience working with health facilities and community structures on client referral, follow-up, continuity of care, demand generation or service uptake.
• Experience supporting programme monitoring, data collation, action tracking, field documentation and report preparation, preferably within government health structures in Nigeria.
• Current professional registration or licence, where required by the candidate’s discipline.

Preferred Qualifications
Knowledge, Skills and Competencies:

• Good understanding of the maternal, newborn and infant continuum of care and community-facility referral pathways.
• Ability to identify implementation gaps, provide respectful and solution-focused feedback, and follow through on agreed actions without assuming formal supervisory authority.
• Strong interpersonal, organisational, communication, documentation and problem-solving skills, with the ability to manage an assigned facility cluster, coordinate effectively with the other Assistants and work with clients, providers, community actors, government counterparts and multidisciplinary teams.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint; familiarity with Kobo Toolbox, ODK or similar platforms is an advantage.
• Ability to handle client information confidentially and willingness to undertake regular travel within Ebonyi State and occasional travel outside the state.