Quality Improvement Competencies for Health Care Quality Professionals: Protocol for a Scoping Review

Background Health care professionals play a crucial role in executing, supporting, and assessing quality improvement programs. Clearly defined competencies in health care quality are essential for optimal performance and serve as the foundation for both quality practice and the design of a capacity development program. Objective This study aims to identify and explore the requisite health care quality professional competencies in implementing quality improvement initiatives. Methods The study will apply a validated scoping review methodology and the JBI recommendations. An extensive search of the PubMed, Scopus, and Embase databases will be conducted. Gray literature documents will be identified by searching selected Ministry of Health websites in Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries and World Health Organization regions with National Quality Policy and Strategy, as well as the Google search engine, using keywords related to quality improvement competencies. The study approach will be reported using PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews). Data will be systematically extracted into a matrix using predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Analysis will subsequently be conducted using inductive thematic analysis and narrative synthesis. Results This scoping review has commenced, and the search strategy has been developed. Preliminary searches conducted in November 2025 through selected electronic databases and gray literature identified 5339 records. Study selection, data extraction, and inductive thematic analysis are scheduled in July 2026 to November 2026. The final findings of this scoping reviews are anticipated to be ready for publication by December 2026. The findings of this study will inform future, larger-scale studies aimed at developing a competency framework for quality improvement among health care quality professionals. Conclusions Conducting this scoping review will provide relevant evidence regarding the quality improvement competencies required for health care quality professionals. The results will provide valuable insights to stakeholders in identifying and prioritizing the competencies necessary to enhance the quality improvement skills of health care quality professionals in Malaysia. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/88787