A qualitative research approach can be useful at various stages of a quality improvement project – from developing a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of your problem, to designing an intervention that addresses the factors influencing relevant practices, to evaluating both the intended and unintended impacts of your improvement efforts. However, the opportunities for a qualitative research approach to optimize a QI project are often missed. The objectives of this session are to: – Provide insight into how qualitative research is relevant to your QI work – Share some qualitative research principles and methods to use in your QI work – Explore practical next steps to build capacity for qualitative methods in your setting