Quality improvement specialist vs quality assurance specialist

The differences between quality improvement specialists and quality assurance specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a quality improvement specialist has an average salary of $67,474, which is higher than the $63,443 average annual salary of a quality assurance specialist.

The top three skills for a quality improvement specialist include performance improvement, quality improvement and data collection. The most important skills for a quality assurance specialist are GMP, patients, and FDA.

Quality improvement specialist vs quality assurance specialist overview

	Quality Improvement Specialist	Quality Assurance Specialist
Yearly salary	$67,474	$63,443
Hourly rate	$32.44	$30.50
Growth rate	28%	6%
Number of jobs	80,504	83,505
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	4

What does a quality improvement specialist do?

A Quality Improvement Specialist in the healthcare system ensures all data and information from patients are correctly handled and coordinates care to the patient. It is the quality improvement specialist's job to ensure that patients get the quality care they needed by creating, developing, and implementing policies set in a medical facility to help patients. A quality improvement specialist must know how to use office-related computer programs, preferably have a degree in the health or medical field, and have good organizational skills.

What does a quality assurance specialist do?

A quality assurance specialist is an individual who is responsible for monitoring, inspecting, and proposing measures to correct and improve a company's product. Quality assurance specialists need to outline quality assurance policies and procedures, making sure that quality standards are assured. It is important that a quality assurance specialist should have strong attention to detail and is excellent in data collection. This work may require a minimum of bachelor's degree and certification to get certified.

Quality improvement specialist vs quality assurance specialist salary

Quality improvement specialists and quality assurance specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Quality Improvement Specialist	Quality Assurance Specialist
Average salary	$67,474	$63,443
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $96,000	Between $41,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	Santa Rosa, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Rhode Island
Best paying company	TechnipFMC	Apple
Best paying industry	Automotive	Pharmaceutical

Differences between quality improvement specialist and quality assurance specialist education

There are a few differences between a quality improvement specialist and a quality assurance specialist in terms of educational background:

	Quality Improvement Specialist	Quality Assurance Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common major	Nursing	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Stanford University

Quality improvement specialist vs quality assurance specialist demographics

Here are the differences between quality improvement specialists' and quality assurance specialists' demographics:

	Quality Improvement Specialist	Quality Assurance Specialist
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 24.8% Female, 75.2%	Male, 42.8% Female, 57.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.8% White, 70.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between quality improvement specialist and quality assurance specialist duties and responsibilities

Quality improvement specialist example responsibilities.

Manage action planning as it relates to the RCA process.
Design, run, and manage the HEDIS data review process/claim encounters to ensure accuracy and integrity of data.
Lead company-wide preparation for NCQA accreditation.
Assist organization in achieving strategic quality/resource consumption goals and JCAHO accreditation.
Design and manage an internal SharePoint site utilize compliance with RESPA guidelines
Manage investigations using applicable methodology focuse on root cause analysis and CAPA identification / implementation.

Quality assurance specialist example responsibilities.

Manage all NDT relate gauges to ensure calibrations requirements are meet.
Provide employee training and manage all NDT certification records per ASNT SNT-TC-1A.
Lead the HACCP team to ensure full compliance with regulatory and industrial food safety standards.
Manage product and environmental sampling for chemical and microbial analysis to meet HACCP requirements.
Lead cross functional project team to build user-friendly windows base customer support applications which interface with the OmniPlan/OmniPlus mainframe application.
Execute quality processes in tissue banking and medical device, FDA requirements 21 CFR 1271 and 21 CFR 820.

Quality improvement specialist vs quality assurance specialist skills

Common quality improvement specialist skills

Performance Improvement, 8%
Quality Improvement, 7%
Data Collection, 7%
Patients, 5%
Patient Safety, 5%
Process Improvement, 4%

Common quality assurance specialist skills

GMP, 6%
Patients, 5%
FDA, 5%
CAPA, 4%
Corrective Action, 4%
CFR, 4%

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Quality Improvement Specialist
Quality Improvement Specialist vs Quality Assurance Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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