TB DIAH’s Quality of Tuberculosis Services

Assessment (QTSA)

Request for Proposal for QTSA in DRC

Cette sollicitation de propositions est disponible en français au lien suivant: https://www.jsi.com/partner-with-

jsi/solicitations/

Background

Tuberculosis (TB) is a communicable disease, one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide, and the leading

cause of death from a single infectious agent, ranking above HIV/AIDS. Globally, an estimated 10 million

people developed TB disease in 2018 and there were an estimated 1.4 million deaths from TB (1.2 million

among HIV-negative people and an additional 251,000 deaths among HIV-positive people)1. Multidrug-

resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is now a serious threat to global health security, adding to the growing

burden of antimicrobial resistance. In 2018, there were about one-half a million new cases of rifampicin-

resistant TB (RR-TB), but only one in three cases were reported by countries to have been treated. Globally,

3.4 percent of new TB cases and 18 percent of previously treated cases had MDR- or RR-TB2.

To address the worldwide TB burden, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) post-2015 End TB Strategy set

the following global targets for 2030: (1) 90 percent reduction in the number of deaths due to TB; (2) 80

percent reduction in TB incidence between 2016 and 2030; and (3) zero percent of TB-affected households

experiencing catastrophic costs because of TB3. The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs) also address TB, especially SDG 3 (“Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”),

which specifies that the TB epidemic should be ended by 2030. Aside from reducing the incidence rate of TB,

the SDGs promote addressing TB under the universal health coverage framework. To strengthen

implementation and monitoring, SDG 17 (“Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global

partnership for sustainable development”) aims to increase the availability of data, including appropriately

disaggregated data4.

Although these global initiatives and country actions have resulted in a decreased TB burden in many

countries, the decline in incidence was slower than required to meet the End TB Strategy targets. Recognizing

that the world as a whole was not on track to reach the 2020 milestones of the strategy, in September 2018, the

United Nations High-Level Meeting (UNHLM) on TB set the stage for high-level attention and action on TB.

The meeting resulted in the adoption of a Political Declaration on Tuberculosis, reaffirming the commitment

of countries to end the TB epidemic globally by 2030. The political declaration included four new global

targets: treat 40 million people for TB disease in the five-year period 2018–2022; reach at least 30 million

people with TB preventive treatment for a latent TB infection in the five-year period 2018–2022; mobilize at

1 https://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/en/ 2 Ibid 3 https://www.who.int/tb/post2015_strategy/en/ 4 http://www.sustainabledevelopment.un.org

3 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

least US$13 billion annually for universal access to TB diagnosis, treatment, and care by 2022; and mobilize at

least US$2 billion annually for TB research5.

To help countries achieve these targets, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

established the Global Accelerator to End TB, a new business model to build on and accelerate previous

strategies to assist high TB burden countries to develop programs to achieve an accountable, responsible, and

inclusive TB response to meet the UNHLM commitments and targets. The initiative includes investments to

improve access to high-quality, patient-centered TB, TB/HIV, and drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB)

diagnosis and treatment services6. To ensure that these investments are effective, USAID recognized the need

for detailed data on the quality of TB services in a systematic way across the high burden countries in which it

is providing financial and technical support to national TB programs.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has a significant burden of TB infection with an estimated TB

incidence rate of 321 per 100,000 in 20187. In 2018, the DRC saw a total of 169,748 of new and relapse cases,

and cases with unknown previous TB treatment, of which nearly 10,000 are children younger than 158. The

evidence of high prevalence of TB across age groups in DRC suggests that TB transmission is still widespread

despite implementation of the Stop TB Strategy. In 2018, DRC’s treatment coverage rate was 63 percent

(nationally) and the case fatality ratio was of 0.29. In 2018, there 787 RR-TB, MDR-TB, and extremely drug-

resistant TB cases notified10. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage for TB/HIV co-infected individuals is high:

87 percent of HIV-positive TB patients were on ART in 201811.

Collaborating Partners

The Quality of Tuberculosis Services Assessment (QTSA) is being implemented in the DRC by the USAID-

funded TB Data, Impact Assessment and Communications Hub (TB DIAH), in collaboration with the

Ministry of Health through the Programme National de Lutte contre la Tuberculose (PNLT).

QTSA Objectives

The success of universal health coverage and the End TB Strategy at the country level and worldwide will

depend on (1) the service capacity of facilities to provide the TB and co-morbid services, (2) the management

systems to support a minimum standard of quality for TB related services, and (3) the capacity of the TB

and/or health sector logistics systems to provide a reliable and uninterrupted supply of the commodities

required, as well as minimize the risk of transmission that may expose patients to danger.

The purpose of this QTSA is to evaluate the quality of TB services at selected facilities in DRC and provide

this information to the PNLT to assist in the development of strategies and interventions to improve TB

service delivery.

5 https://www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/72/268 6 https://www.usaid.gov/global-health/health-areas/tuberculosis/resources/news-and-updates/global-accelerator-end-tb 7 https://worldhealthorg.shinyapps.io/tb_profiles/?_inputs_&lan=%22EN%22&iso2=%22CD%22 8 https://hub.tbdiah.org/dashboards/countries/DR-Congo 9 https://worldhealthorg.shinyapps.io/tb_profiles/?_inputs_&lan=%22EN%22&iso2=%22CD%22 10 https://hub.tbdiah.org/dashboards/countries/DR-Congo 11 https://worldhealthorg.shinyapps.io/tb_profiles/?_inputs_&lan=%22EN%22&iso2=%22CD%22

4 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

The QTSA objectives are to:

Assess the current condition of TB service quality in terms of the availability of skilled providers,

equipment, and organizational structures

Determine the quality of TB services provided by facilities and the necessary gaps to fill in order to improve

quality

Assess provider competencies and patient satisfaction

Evaluate the clinical outcomes of patients who have received TB care and treatment

Study Design

The QTSA is a cross-sectional study. Quality of care can be said to consist of three key elements, namely:

structure or the resources available at a health facility; process or the interaction between providers and patients;

and outcomes or the consequences of care12. The services patients receive can be deficient at the structural,

process, or outcome levels leading to poor quality TB care. Therefore, an underlying consideration in the

design of this QTSA is that patients’ perceived satisfaction influences service utilization and, eventually, their

health outcomes. As a result, the QTSA design seeks to conduct a facility audit, interview TB providers and

patients receiving TB services, and conduct a review of facility and patient records.

Tools: Four tools will be administered for the purpose of this QTSA:

1. Facility Audit. This is a questionnaire administered to different personnel at the health facility (in-

charge, laboratory technician, data manager, pharmacist, etc.) who provide TB or TB-related services –

approximately 1.5-2 hours long

2. Provider Interview. This is a questionnaire administered to TB service providers – approximately 30-40

minutes long

3. Patient Interview. This is a questionnaire administered to TB patients present at the facility on the day

of the QTSA – approximately 30-40 minutes long

4. Register Review. This is a form which compiles data extracted from the appropriate facility-based TB

registers to record patient outcomes and services provided – approximately 3-4 hours

In addition to these standard tools, further tools or modules focused on PNLT priority areas of interest may

also be included. All tools will be translated into French as well as appropriate local languages as determined

by the sampled regions.

Study Location: The QTSA will take place in the following nine provinces: Lualaba, Bas-Uélé, Maniema,

Tshuapa, Sud-Ubangi, Haut-Uélé, Mai-Ndombe, Kasaï-Central, and Kasaï-Oriental (subject to change based

on the final study sample). Health zones will be proportionately sampled from these nine provinces (based on

each zone’s total number of facilities). A total number of 225 to 250 facilities will likewise be proportionately

sampled from these health zones.

Sampling: The study will use dual-frame sampling to identify QTSA facilities. First, a listing of large health

facilities providing TB-related services will be used wherever it exists – either based on a master facility list or a

12 A. Donabedian, “Evaluating the quality of medical care,” Milbank Quarterly, vol. 83, no. 4, pp. 691–729, 2005.

5 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

list available at the PNLT office. Second, the PNLT and other relevant authorities or stakeholders will help to

identify other TB service delivery points that satisfy the criteria, and these will be numerated. The sample will

include 225 to 250 facilities (including provincial referral hospitals in the selected areas).

Within the selected facilities, 3-5 TB service providers will be randomly selected for interviews while patient

interviews will be conducted with 4-5 patients per facility who visit on the data collection day.

TB DIAH and the PNLT will work with the successful Local Research Organization (LRO) to finalize the

sampling of the facilities, service providers, and patients for interviews.

Activities and Responsibilities for the Local Research Organization (LRO)

The LRO has overall responsibility for organizing and managing the field activities for the survey, in

coordination with TB DIAH and the PNLT. The LRO will be directly responsible to the Principal Investigator

(PI) from TB DIAH and designated coordinator from the PNLT. An in-country TB DIAH Survey Manager,

reporting to the PI, will provide oversight functions on the LRO. The LRO is expected to be very well

informed about the TB epidemiology in the DRC, have clinical TB expertise within the Congolese healthcare

system, and have a strong knowledge of the PNLT’s policies and guidelines.

Specifically, the LRO will be responsible for the following activities:

1. Country adaptation of the QTSA’s data collection tools

The LRO will provide technical guidance based on knowledge of the national TB strategy, indicators and HMIS

tools and should therefore have a thorough understanding of the national TB strategy; national TB guidelines,

protocols and algorithms for screening and diagnosis, infection control, treatment, drug regimens and

community-based diagnosis and care; key indicators that are collected and reported by facilities to the PNLT;

and the data collection and reporting tools used by facilities, and know how to apply the QTSA tools in the DRC

context to generate high quality QTSA data.

Adapt the existing standard tools to the DRC context according to the national TB guidelines – especially

for TB algorithm screening and diagnosis, infection control, treatment, and drug regimen to support

country standards. Examples of previous QTSA tool adaptations can be found at this link:

https://www.tbdiah.org/assessments/quality-of-tuberculosis-services-assessments/

Work collaboratively with the PNLT, TB DIAH, and USAID/DRC to adapt the standard tools and

develop a field implementation manual. The LRO will be required to have face-to-face interactions and

build a relationship with the PNLT in this process.

Translate the tools into French and other local languages as needed

2. Obtaining approvals, including Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval

Obtain relevant IRB approval(s) in DRC

Obtain other permissions and/or authorizations from governing bodies (if required), including

authorization by the appropriate parties and levels to conduct data collection during the pretest, training,

and data collection phase at the selected facilities

3. Recruitment of QTSA staff including data collectors and supervisors

6 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

The LRO shall recruit and hire QTSA core staff including a study coordinator, research specialists, data

manager/data analyst, TB specialist, and quality assurance officer(s) as well as field supervisors and data

collectors/enumerators for data collection. All staff participating in the study should take part in the QTSA

training.

Recruit and hire data collectors and supervisors – data collection teams will consist of one supervisor

and four enumerators (number of teams and background required will be provided by TB DIAH and

the PNLT). The LRO should have ready access to a pool of qualified human resources, including

trained data collectors and field supervisors who have previous work experience in the health field,

ideally are medical doctors, and who have previously participated in health facility surveys and are

familiar with electronic data collection using tablets. The data collectors should be both men and

women.

4. Pretest

The purpose of the pretest is to check that the tools and questions work as intended and are understood by

potential participants of the study. The pretest should focus on respondents’ understanding of the questions,

appropriate phrasing and sequencing of questions, time taken to administer each tool, ease of administration of

the tools, as well as appropriateness of the questions to the local context, among other things. During the pretest,

the tools should be administered in French if possible, or otherwise in another local language, as they would be

during actual data collection.

Pretest all the data collection tools to check that the questions work as intended and are understood by

potential participants in this QTSA

o The pretest will be occur at least 6 weeks before training to allow sufficient time to update and re-test

the e-tools if necessary; TB DIAH strongly recommends at least 7 working days for a successful

pretest, which roughly comes to visiting at least 5 facilities and testing all sections of the tools at least

twice, with the exception of the MDR-TB sections that can be pre-tested just once if only few facilities

are available

o LRO staff that will be assigned to this QTSA will conduct the pretest of the French tools (using a hard

copy of the tools)

o Additional pretests may be needed based on the outcome of the first pretest and if time allows

o At the conclusion of the pretest, a clean updated versions of the French and English tools will be

created, and the tool translations in other languages used for the QTSA will be updated

Arrange all logistics for pretest, including:

o Coordinate with the PNLT and other stakeholders (as needed) for their participation

o Send introduction letters to facilitate access to facilities for pretest

o Print all QTSA tools and consent forms for pretesting

o Conduct the pretest in selected sites (the pretest location should be selected in collaboration with the

PNLT and should not include any of the QTSA locations or facilities). Depending on the destination

for field pretest, security detail may need to be considered.

7 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

o Revise tools based on feedback

Any other tasks requested by TB DIAH to fulfill the requirements of the protocol

5. Training of data collectors

The LRO will be responsible for training the data collection teams, consisting of the field supervisors and data

collectors, on all aspect of the QTSA and provide them with the skills and knowledge to generate high quality

data. Additionally, the field supervisors will also be trained to guide their respective data collection teams,

monitor the quality and completeness of data collected by their teams and troubleshoot any challenges that their

teams may come across. By the end of the training, all participants should be conversant with facility-based TB

data collection procedures, be aware of ethical issues governing data collection, learn interviewing techniques

(such as adequate probing without asking leading questions), be able to select appropriate study participants, be

able to administer the study tools adeptly, to enter data directly onto tablets, and to communicate any

uncertainties or concerns promptly to the LRO.

Procure and prepare Android compatible tablets for data collection

o Use SurveyCTO to program and develop the DRC-customized QTSA e-tools and upload them onto

the tablets

o Tablets should have at least an 8" screen (e.g., LG GPad F 8.0 with dimensions 8.29" x 4.89") in order

to properly display the questions

o E-tools will be used during the training field practice (as opposed to hard copy tools during the

pretest), and any issues must be reported immediately to data manager and TB DIAH staff

o At the conclusion of the training, a clean updated versions of the French and English tools will be

created (if any issues arise), and the tool translations in other languages used for the QTSA will be

updated

Arrange all logistics for the training, including:

o Coordinate with the PNLT and other stakeholders (as needed) for their participation

o Send introduction letters to facilitate access to facilities for training practice

o Print all QTSA tools and consent forms

o Print all training materials

o Arrange venue and supplies, including tablets loaded with SurveyCTO software

o Collaborate with PNLT and TB DIAH to facilitate training and practice sessions

Allocate 7 days for training, including 1 day practice/pretest at selected sites (the practice location should

be selected in collaboration with the PNLT and should not include any of the QTSA locations or

facilities). Depending on the destination for training field practice days, security detail may need to be

considered.

Training should include sufficient time to cover:

8 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

o General TB concepts and DRC TB context

o In-depth coverage of the data collection tools, including practice administering them in class and via

fieldwork

o Responsibilities of the enumerators, field supervisors, and other QTSA staff

Any other tasks requested by TB DIAH to fulfill the requirements of the protocol

6. Fieldwork

Planning the fieldwork will involve securing all necessary permissions, approvals and support letters for

conducting the study and making them available to the data collection teams. The LRO should be aware of each

team’s daily schedule and be able to track that all teams are on schedule. Time management is a necessity for the

timely completion of this assignment and the LRO shall strive to ensure that all members of the data collection

teams appreciate this and are able to collect data in the stipulated time.

At a minimum, the data collection teams will administer one Facility Audit, one Register Review, 1-5 Provider

Interviews, and 3-5 Patient Interviews at each facility. The provider interviews should be administered to

clinicians that are involved in TB diagnosis and treatment, and in some cases, the facility in-charge, clinicians in

the OPD, laboratory personnel, the HIV/TB focal person, depending on the facility. The number of provider

interviews per facility will depend on the facility size. The data collectors should purposively select a consecutive

sample of TB patients who visit the facility on the day of data collection based on the inclusion and exclusion

criteria outlined in the QTSA protocol. Data collectors will collect data electronically on tablets in real time using

SurveyCTO, which will be linked to the TB-DIAH QTSA database. Data should be uploaded to the server in

real time or at the end of each day when an online connection is established. The uploaded data will be

synchronized to the central database and will be accessible to the LRO data manager who shall perform daily

quality checks.

Arrange all logistics for fieldwork, including:

o Communicate with local authorities about the survey and ensure teams receive supporting letters and

facilities are informed of the upcoming survey

o Ensure availability of necessary cash and copies of data collection instruments to implement fieldwork

o Make fieldwork assignments

o Develop fieldwork schedule and make recommendations for changes in order to improve the logistics

and efficiency of the field activities

o Ensure safe and appropriate vehicle are secured for all teams, including security detail

o Supervise fieldwork, using agreed upon tools

Any other tasks requested by TB DIAH to fulfill the requirements of the protocol

7. Data management

The LRO core team shall accompany and supervise the data collection teams during the first week of data

collection to ensure that the study protocol is followed and that study tools are administered according to protocol. During data collection, the LRO shall ensure data quality through multiple levels of quality assurance. The field

9 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

supervisors should provide the first level of quality assurance by ensuring that fieldwork is in full adherence to the

protocol. The field supervisors should check each QTSA tool for accuracy and completeness before data are

uploaded to the server. The second level of quality assurance should be performed by the LRO’s data manager,

who should look through all data uploaded by the field supervisors on a daily basis and identify and resolve

inconsistencies before the team moves on to the next facility. Issues flagged during this data quality check should

be corrected as soon as possible before the data collectors leave the field. Third, data quality checks shall be

performed by the LRO quality control/data management team regularly on data that have been submitted by

the field teams. Frequent data quality checks shall be done to ensure all data irregularities are identified and

measures are taken to correct and avoid errors going forward. The LRO is responsible for managing all QTSA

data.

The LRO shall prepare a data management standard operating procedure (SOP) that will guide data review,

data cleaning, data uploading, labeling and merging processes, as well as data management roles and

responsibilities at different levels, to ensure high data quality and integrity.

After data collection has been completed, the LRO shall clean and label the data set using STATA software. The

LRO’s data manager shall systematically go through all collected data, looking for inconsistencies and outliers,

and have a system in place for making and documenting all corrections. If necessary, the data collectors shall be

contacted and asked to explain data inconsistencies to help make appropriate corrections as necessary. Where

necessary, data collectors shall be instructed to go back to the facility records to resolve inconsistencies.

Enter all survey data in SurveyCTO during data collection using Android tablets for each site visit

Follow data management activities in collaboration with TB DIAH

o Ensure data quality checks are carried out as per the protocol; monitor data quality during data

collection both manually and electronically

o Identify possible data errors and develop a system for making corrections as needed

o Ensure fieldwork is in full adherence to the protocol, including checking questionnaires for

completeness prior to sending for data processing or submitting to the server

o Clean and fully label dataset in STATA; provide clean Do Files and data files

o Create codebook or any other data documentation for data analysis

Any other tasks requested by TB DIAH to fulfill the requirements of the protocol

8. Analysis and report writing

TB DIAH will lead and be responsible for data analysis with support from the LRO to write data analysis

scripts, create a codebook or other data documentation for analysis, present data, and interpret the findings in

light of the PNLT strategic plan and interventions. The LRO will support the presentation of initial findings that

need to be shared and validated with country stakeholders. The LRO shall also organize a data review meeting,

with guidance from the local TB DIAH survey manager and the TB DIAH HQ staff, to review the preliminary

findings with the PNLT, Ministry of Health, USAID Mission, and other stakeholders to get input on the

priorities for analysis and presentation in the final QTSA report.

10 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

The LRO shall contribute to drafting sections of the QTSA report, including TB epidemiology, TB statistics, and

national TB response in the DRC; a summary of the methodology and key outcomes of the tool pretest, training

for data collectors, data collection; and contribute to the results and discussion sections of the final QTSA report.

The LRO shall help contextualize findings with field observations and ensure that interpretations and

conclusions align with the PNLT’s strategic plan and interventions.

Contribute to the data analysis under the direction of TB DIAH and review the draft sections of the

report in order to contextualize results and make sure that interpretations and conclusions align with

PNLT strategic plan and interventions

Organize and participate actively in the data review/consensus meeting, by contributing to the

elaboration of recommendations based on QTSA findings and results

Provide a synopsis on quality of care in DRC as part of the background for the report

Any other tasks requested by TB DIAH to fulfill the requirements of the protocol

9. COVID-19 contingency plans

Given the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, contingency plans will need to be put in place for the pretest,

training, data collection, and data review meeting in case the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic requires

partially-remote or fully-remote events.

For the pretest, training, and data review meeting, this could mean the need for additional A/V equipment,

provision of IT/tech support, planning and preparation if virtual software are used, the booking of several

rooms instead of one for physical distancing reasons, and the possibility of making the event (pretest, training,

and data review) last longer than initially planned.

For the training, this may also mean planning for cascade training (or training of trainers). For the data

collection phase, remote supervision may need to be organized if in-person supervision proves too risky.

For all in-person events conducted during the course of the QTSA in DRC, all the necessary personal

protective equipment (PPE) —including masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer— will need to be secured in

advance of the pretest, training, data collection phase, and data review meeting and in sufficient quantities for

all participants.

10. Budget

Fill out the QTSA LRO Budget Template (Excel file) provided by the TB DIAH team and downloadable

at this link: https://www.jsi.com/partner-with-jsi/solicitations/

Exclude any costs related to dissemination of final QTSA results

Timing

The award will be made in December 2020 and implementation should start shortly after.

A general timeline of the different phases of the QTSA is provided below:

1) Tool customization, including pretest, and IRB Approval – estimated duration: 8 weeks

2) Preparation for data collection, including training – estimated duration: 6 weeks

11 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

3) Data collection – estimated duration: 8 weeks

4) Data analysis and reporting – estimated duration: 6 weeks

LRO candidates are requested to submit a timeline based on the above activities and an expected start date.

Here is a chronological summary including some important pointers that can be of help when developing the

budget:

Item Party/Parties responsible

Identifying key staff involved in the QTSA and sending full contact list with assigned roles and responsibilities to TB DIAH team

LRO

Adapting QTSA tools to the DRC context, in close collaboration with PNLT. The Register Review in particular needs to be closely reviewed to match registers in use throughout DRC. Any additional customized sections will need to be developed in conversation with the PNLT and TB DIAH team.

LRO, under guidance of TB DIAH team and PNLT

Assembling all documents necessary to the local IRB dossier and submitting QTSA to local IRB; following-up at regular intervals

LRO with support from TB DIAH team

Obtaining authorization and support letters for pretest and training from all required levels and authorities

LRO

Organizing pretest (securing transportation and PPE; selection of facilities and their notification; finalizing pretest schedule and participants)

LRO, under guidance of TB DIAH team

Updating tools based on pretest, and updating all translations into other languages. Updating e-Tools on SurveyCTO.

LRO

Hiring all supervisors, team leaders, and enumerators/data collectors based on criteria including experience conducting facility-based surveys, language skills, TB knowledge, etc.

LRO with input from TB DIAH team as requested

Obtaining authorization and support letters for data collection from all required levels and authorities

LRO

Organizing the training (venue, meals, and transportation; schedule and materials to prepare and distribute and/or present; renting tablets; selecting facilities for the field practice portion of the training and notifying them; securing adequate PPE)

LRO, under guidance of TB DIAH team

Finalization of all tools in all languages before data collection phase begins LRO with support from TB DIAH team

Organizing and overseeing the data collection phase, including overall and individual team schedules, contact information; facility contact information; data quality assurance plan in place; frequent remote supervisions; daily data checks and communication with team leaders; progress tracking; weekly reports submitted to TB DIAH team.

LRO, under guidance of TB DIAH team

Managing and cleaning data; developing final clean and labeled dataset in STATA (including Do Files) and log of changes for submission to TB DIAH team. The QTSA tools change log (i.e., all changes made during the data collection phase) will also need to be submitted to TB DIAH along with the final set of tools in French.

LRO with guidance from TB DIAH team

Participation in data analysis and explaining responses as required by the TB DIAH team. Organizing data review meeting (venue, meals, and transportation;

LRO, under guidance of TB DIAH team

12 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

schedule, attendees, invitations; securing adequate PPE) and compiling list of recommendations to be included in technical report.

Providing feedback and input in the final technical report LRO

Disseminating published technical report to in-country TB stakeholders LRO, USAID, PNLT

Deliverables

Signed contract and agreement between TB DIAH/JSI and LRO

Workplan including a timeline of activities

Letters of approval from a recognized IRB or ethics committee

QTSA tools for DRC at various stages of progress

o Customized versions of the QTSA tools for DRC in English and French (before pretest)

o Updated versions of the English and French QTSA tools for DRC (after pretest)

o Translation of the updated QTSA tools for DRC in other local languages (before training)

o Final version of QTSA tools for DRC (at the end of data collection)

o QTSA tools for DRC scripted into SurveyCTO

Report describing pretest results, data collection procedures, supervisor observations/comments, and

limitations/problems encountered

Training report from the training workshop for data collectors and supervisors

Field implementation manual for data collection teams which includes a guide for the register review

Report on data collection, including facilitating and hindering factors, and data management

SOP for data management and cleaning

Cleaned and fully labeled dataset in STATA (including Do Files) and track changes

A copy of any other data documentation for data analysis and entry

Background section of the draft report including literature review on DRC quality of TB services

programs

Review of the finalized draft report with track changes and comments

Weekly report on the process of data collection during the data collection phase

Weekly update meetings

Regular meetings with PNLT counterparts to keep them informed on the process of the QTSA

13 | RFP for QTSA in DRC

Selection Criteria for Proposals

Proposals will be reviewed based on their overall technical merit. Proposals may be submitted in English or in

French. The following criteria will be used to evaluate proposals:

Demonstrated capacity and experience of the organization to conduct similar surveys and to complete

activities within the stipulated timeline

Qualifications and experience of key personnel

Experience working in the DRC in the health sector

Experience in use of electronic platforms for data collection and availability of electronic equipment for

data collection

Fluency in French, fluency in other local languages a plus

Budget clarity and justification

Bids

Interested and qualified LRO candidates should present bids directly to TB DIAH. All bids must be received

no later than December 1st, 2020. Bids should be submitted electronically to tb_diah@jsi.com

Bids are to include:

A detailed description of the proposed activities (pretest and tool revision, training, monitoring of the

fieldwork, data quality assurance, etc.)

A detailed budget, submitted using the template available at this link: https://www.jsi.com/partner-with-

jsi/solicitations/

Résumés of the key personnel of the organization who will work on the QTSA

Provide experience in the use of electronics or tablets in data collection

Provide knowledge/experience in provision of TB services within DRC

Statement of organizational capacity, including reports of similar surveys coordinated in the past six

months (preferably) or in the past year

All documents must be in either English or French. A coherent combination of the two languages (e.g., the

description of proposed activities and the budget in English but CVs in French) will be accepted.

This publication was produced with the support of the United States Agency for

International Development (USAID) under the terms of the TB Data, Impact

Assessment and Communications Hub (TB DIAH) Associate Award No.

7200AA18LA00007. TB DIAH is implemented by the University of North Carolina at

Chapel Hill, in partnership with John Snow, Inc. Views expressed are not necessarily

those of USAID or the United States government.