The ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course is a six-week online program in partnership with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) that covers Patient Safety and Quality Improvement (QI). It includes 13 self-paced modules (17.5 hours total) and supports cohort-based learning through WhatsApp networking. Upon completion, participants receive an internationally recognized certificate.
Registration for 2025 opens in April, with priority given to healthcare institutions submitting six or more registrations.
The ACQUIRE Experiential Leadership Course builds on the Theory Course, helping healthcare teams apply QI principles in real-world settings. This hands-on program supports leadership development, systemic improvements, and practical QI implementation. In 2025, the Experiential Leadership Course will be offered to three cohorts:
- C-suite leaders from Level 4 or 5 hospitals.
- QI teams from institutions with six or more Theory Course graduates.
- QI mentors and coaches documenting leadership insights in African healthcare.
The Theory Course lays the foundation, while the Experiential Course provides hands-on application and coaching for real-world improvements.
The ACQUIRE Experiential Leadership Course offers healthcare worker participants practical knowledge and skills in applying the science of quality improvement in their context. Hospital-based multi-disciplinary teams will select a quality improvement and patient safety project and then work with a mentor-coach, through a PDSA cycle based on their real-world data and root-cause analyses. In doing a QI project addressing a real-world issue within their institution participants will grow their skills in teamwork, communication, responding to adverse events, developing healthcare leadership skills, and implementing processes to strengthen patient-centered care among many other topics. After completion of the ACQUIRE leadership program, both the theory and experiential courses, participants can lead quality improvement projects with PDSA cycles that result in measurable progress within their institutions.
The ACQUIRE 2025 Experiential Leadership Course is available to those institutions that had at least 6 team members complete the ACQUIRE-IHI Basic Certificate Theory Course on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement. Those not eligible to apply did not have 6 team members from your institution complete the course. The 2025 ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course will be open for registration in April 2025 and we welcome you to encourage recruitment so you are eligible for the next Experiential Leadership Course.
The 2025 ACQUIRE Coaches Leadership Course is open to team or department leaders who have hands-on experience with QI projects and have completed the ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course.
The ACQUIRE C-Suite Experiential Leadership Course is by invitation only. Selected institutions are located in Kenya and these institutions have participating healthcare workers who completed the ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course in 2024. Each invited institution is eligible to have 2 members of the leadership team join.
The ACQUIRE 2025 Experiential Leadership Course is open to a select number of QI teams, as mentoring and coaching support for project implementation is limited. Therefore, only a limited number of the strongest applications will be selected. There is no guarantee that any submitted application will meet the requirements or be accepted into the course. Institutions are welcome to submit applications for as many teams as they wish, however, as the process is competitive, we encourage internal peer review before final submission to strengthen the quality of applications.
The ACQUIRE 2025 Coaches Experiential Leadership Course is open to a limited number of individuals. Therefore, only the strongest applicants will be selected. There is no guarantee that any submitted application will meet the requirements or be accepted into the course.
ACQUIRE invites your institution to assemble a QI team primarily composed of healthcare workers (at least six participants) who have completed the ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course. However, we recognize that certain project needs may require additional team members who have not completed the theory course, and their inclusion is encouraged when relevant, as the core focus of the experiential program is fostering a cohesive and collaborative QI team. (Please highlight any such team members and their intended contributions in your application)
The ACQUIRE Theory Leadership Course is a six-week virtual training program in partnership with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), valued at $399. However, enrollment through ACQUIRE is offered at no cost to participants.
The Experiential Leadership Course is a 16-week mentored and coached peer-learning program designed to equip healthcare workers in Africa with practical, hands-on leadership experience. Comparable courses start at $995/person. However, enrollment through ACQUIRE is offered at no cost to participants.
The Theory Leadership Course is self-paced, consisting of 13 modules that require an estimated 17.5 hours to complete over six weeks. Participants can progress at their own pace while building foundational knowledge and are supported by weekly leaderboards via WhatsApp groups.
The 2025 QI Teams Experiential Leadership Course is fully remote and runs for 16 weeks, from Thursday, March 6, to Thursday, June 26, 2025. Discussion meetings take place every other Thursday for two hours via Zoom. Participants work as a multi-disciplinary team with the online support of an assigned coach. The course emphasizes action-based learning, where teams commit to identifying gaps in their projects and implementing improvement actions. The Experiential Course provides structured guidance while allowing teams to apply their learning in real time within their institutions.
Each QI Team participant is expected to show up for all the learning sessions and take an active role in the project, contributing meaningfully to discussions, decision-making, and implementation. Responsibilities and assignments should be balanced within the team based on mutual agreement to ensure fair participation. The course is designed for collaborative learning, where all team members engage fully, share insights, and support one another. All participate, and all learn.
The ACQUIRE 2025 Coaches Experiential Leadership Course is fully remote and runs for 17 weeks, from Thursday, March 6, with a Kick-off meeting, to Thursday, July 10, 2025. Discussion meetings take place every Thursday for two hours via Zoom. As a coach, you will work with multi-disciplinary QI teams with the online support of international QI experts. The course emphasizes action-based learning, where teams commit to identifying gaps in their projects and implementing improvement actions. The ACQUIRE 2025 Coaches Experiential Leadership Course provides structured guidance, peer to peer-to-peer learning, while allowing coaches and QI teams to apply their learning in real time within their institutions.
Selection for the ACQUIRE 2025 Experiential Leadership Course will be competitive, with a limited number of QI teams accepted. To identify a strong QI project, begin by examining areas of excellence within your institution. Identify processes, practices, or innovations that are particularly effective in one department and explore how they can be adapted, expanded, or scaled to enhance performance in other areas. This approach builds on existing strengths while fostering continuous improvement across the organization. A strong QI project should focus on leveraging success to drive measurable improvement. The selection team will assess applications based on the following key criteria:
- QI Project feasibility – Is the project idea scoped down to something achievable within the 4-month course timeline?
- Multi-disciplinary team composition – Does the proposed team bring diverse expertise to ensure a well-rounded approach?
- Institutional support – Is hospital leadership willing to back the initiative with time and resources?
- Measurability – What are you trying to measure? Is the problem measurable? Can performance be tracked over time to demonstrate improvement? How often does the QI problem occur per day, week, or month? If it happens only a few times per month, it may be difficult to implement meaningful improvements in the 16-week cycle.
- Scalability – Can this effective practice be implemented in other units or departments?
Yes, applicants who submit their drafts before Tuesday, 18th February, will receive feedback if they require guidance before the final submission. However, please note that the final deadline remains Sunday, 23rd February, 2025.
Yes. If your institution requires a formal letter to the leadership to support your application to the ACQUIRE 2025 Experiential Leadership Course, send us an email to [email protected] and we can prepare one for you.
Graduates of the theory and experiential leadership courses receive a certificate upon completion. Most regulators will be able to compute the number of credits from this QI project for it to count toward continuing medical education (CME) credits.
Participants are encouraged to stay connected by joining our Community of Practice WhatsApp group. The community is made up of Connect with fellow QI Champions and join the topic-based group you are most interested in. Subscribe to the ACQUIRE newsletter on our website https://acquirefrontline.org/ and stay up-to-date on webinars and other opportunities.
The Theory Leadership Training is open to healthcare workers from all cadres in a team of 6 from their institutions. Participants will commit to complete the 17.75 hours of virtual learning to complete the ACQUIRE- IHI Basic Certificate on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement.
Participants will gain theoretical and practical knowledge in patient safety, teamwork, and communication, Quality improvement, responding to adverse events, healthcare leadership, and patient-centered care among many other topics.
The ACQUIRE-IHI Basic Certificate Theory Course on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement is a six-week virtual training program, valued at $399. However, enrollment through ACQUIRE is offered at no cost to participants.
Yes, participants who complete the six-week Theory program or the 16 week Experiential program will receive a certificate of completion.
ACQUIRE is committed to inclusivity and will make reasonable accommodations to support participants with disabilities. Please indicate your needs during the application process, and our team will work with you to ensure your full participation.
The theory training is a 6 week virtual training on the ACQUIRE-IHI Basic Certificate Theory Course on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement, featuring 13 courses and an international credential. The experiential leadership training is a practical training program where teams that completed the theory course are eligible to apply as a team, where they put theory into action in their own hospital context. There is a separate Experiential Leadership Training Program designed for those who wish to become a coach and for C-suite Leaders.
