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Sophia Osawe, PhD, MPH, AIMLS, EMBA

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Sophia Osawe, PhD, MPH, AIMLS, EMBA

Senior Research Manager / Lead, Quality Assurance Unit

Areas of expertise

  • Virology
  • Quality Assurance
  • Diagnostics
  • Immunology
  • Maternal and neonatal health

Educational Qualifications

  • PhD, Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Jos
  • MPH, Manchester Metropolitan University United Kingdom
  • AIMLS (Virology), Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria/Federal College of Veterinary Medicine and Laboratory Science, Vom
  • EMBA (Clinical Research Administration), Indian School of Management and Research, India
  • (Hons) Microbiology, University of Jos

Biography

Sophia Osawe is the Unit Lead for the Quality Assurance Unit and a Senior Research Manager, with over 15 years of experience in diagnostics, research, system strengthening, project management and quality management systems implementation. Sophia has coordinated several observational studies (two large cohort studies) and clinical trials. She received funding to conduct studies around COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and HIV prevention. Sophia has co-authored over 20 peer-reviewed manuscripts and presented several abstracts at local and international conferences. Sophia led the institute’s first medical laboratory (2017) as well as a total of 9 medical laboratories in Malawi (2020-2023) to achieve and maintain international accreditation in accordance with ISO 15189.

The Quality Assurance Unit

The Quality Assurance Unit (QAU) at IRCE has a critical role in ensuring the integrity, accuracy, and compliance of research implementation processes. The QAU is responsible for developing and implementing quality management systems to safeguard the reliability of data, methodologies, and outcomes in research projects. This includes establishing standardized protocols, conducting regular audits, and providing oversight to ensure adherence to ethical guidelines, regulatory requirements, and best practices. The QAU collaborates with research teams to identify and address potential issues, offering guidance on quality improvement measures.