ASQAT sealASQATSafety, Quality & Accreditation

An ANPA Taskforce

ANPA Safety, Quality & Accreditation Taskforce (ASQAT)

A taskforce of

ANPA — Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas

ANPA Safety, Quality & Accreditation Taskforce

Transforming Healthcare in Nigeria

A national framework for safer care, stronger health systems, a supported healthcare workforce, and measurable accountability.

Explore the Framework View the Three Pillars
Read the White Paper
3
Pillars
39
Domains
5
Phases
A multidisciplinary Nigerian healthcare team reviewing quality improvement priorities together around a table.
A multidisciplinary Nigerian healthcare team reviewing quality improvement priorities together around a table.Illustrative image
The framework architecture

Pillar 01

Care

Pillar 02

Systems

Pillar 03

People

One national outcome

Safer Care. Stronger Systems. A Supported Workforce.

A supported workforce makes reliable systems possible. Reliable systems make consistent clinical care possible. Treated separately, each pillar stalls.

Find your path

The framework reads differently depending on your responsibility

Choose the entry point that matches your role. The framework itself does not change: only the order in which it is presented to you.

A Nigerian hospital chief executive, physician, nurse leader, pharmacist and quality officer reviewing institutional patient safety performance together.

For hospitals & health institutions

Hospitals & Health Institutions

Turn the framework into institutional action.

For Hospitals & Institutions
Senior Nigerian health leaders reviewing healthcare quality reports and national transformation priorities around a meeting table.

For government & decision makers

Government & Decision Makers

Turn standards into stronger health systems.

For Government & Policy Leaders
A multidisciplinary group of Nigerian healthcare professionals, including a nurse, pharmacist, laboratory scientist, physician and administrator, working through implementation material.

For healthcare professionals & partners

Healthcare Professionals & Partners

Bring expertise into the transformation.

For Professionals & Partners

The case for transformation

Healthcare outcomes are shaped by more than clinical expertise.

The White Paper identifies challenges that reinforce one another. None can be resolved in isolation.

  • 01Patient safety and quality variationCare standards differ sharply between institutions treating similar patients.
  • 02Emergency and referral failuresDelays and unclear referral pathways decide outcomes before treatment begins.
  • 03Governance and accountability gapsResponsibility for quality is often undefined at institutional level.
  • 04Infrastructure and operational reliabilityEquipment, utilities and maintenance systems interrupt clinical work.
  • 05Workforce pressure and migrationStaffing losses compound the burden carried by those who remain.
  • 06Public trust and transparencyWithout published performance, confidence cannot be rebuilt.
Understand the Case for Change

Why this work matters

Behind every standard is a human life.

Patient-safety events across Nigeria have raised urgent questions about emergency access, clinical governance, communication, accountability and the reliability of healthcare systems. ASQAT exists to help turn those questions into standards, implementation and sustained improvement.

Explore the Human Context See How ASQAT Responds

The ASQAT framework

Three pillars. One national transformation framework.

Pillar 01

Clinical Excellence, Patient Safety & Quality of Care

Comparable safety and quality standards apply wherever a patient is treated.

15 domains

Explore Pillar 1

Pillar 02

Health Systems, Governance & Infrastructure Transformation

Accountability for quality is named, resourced and reviewed at board level.

12 domains

Explore Pillar 2

Pillar 03

Workforce, Culture & National Healthcare Transformation

Working conditions and remuneration support retention rather than exit.

12 domains

Explore Pillar 3

39 domains sit beneath these pillars, each with priority components and a time bound objective.

What the framework connects

Policy joined to practice

01Know
Institutions can see the standard they are expected to meet.
02Implement
Tools and pathways translate the standard into daily practice.
03Measure
Agreed indicators show whether practice is changing.
04Prove
Documented evidence supports institutional claims.
05Improve
Findings feed back into standards, training and priorities.

From framework to national implementation

Five sequenced phases

  1. 1

    Framework Development and Consensus Building

    0 to 6 months

    Finalize the white paper, agree on the pillar structure, and stand up the subcommittees and pilot pipeline..

  2. 2

    Pilot Design and Baseline Assessment

    6 to 12 months

    Assess readiness, establish baseline metrics, and prepare pilot hospitals for implementation..

  3. 3

    Pilot Implementation

    12 to 24 months

    Implement standards in pilot hospitals and begin structured reporting..

  4. 4

    Accreditation Readiness and Scale-Up

    18 to 36 months

    Expand participation, publish the first annual report, and launch the national scorecard..

  5. 5

    National Institutionalization

    3 to 5 years

    Formalize the accreditation pathway and embed the framework in national policy and governance..

View the Implementation Roadmap

Next phase

From framework to pilot implementation

ASQAT is preparing to move from framework development into institutional pilot design, beginning with the selection of an initial flagship site and implementation partners.

UNTH is currently being considered as the proposed initial pilot institution.

Explore Pilot Strategy

Framework into practice

Standards, tools, measurement, evidence

Access the standards, implementation guidance, measurement definitions and approved evidence that support healthcare transformation in practice.

Implementation evidence and institutional case studies will be published as they are formally documented and approved.

Ask ASQAT

Search and navigate the ASQAT knowledge framework

Navigate by pillar, domain, objective or implementation stage.

Ask the Framework

Implementation path

  1. Framework
  2. Pilot
  3. Implement
  4. Assess
  5. Scale