A checklist for the ER: could a one-page guide save lives in acute heart failure?
NCT ID NCT07727304
First seen Jul 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 28, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether a best-practices checklist can help emergency doctors manage acute heart failure more effectively. The checklist guides assessment, treatment, and decisions about whether to admit or discharge patients. Researchers are introducing the checklist in four large Ontario emergency departments and tracking patient outcomes like death, need for breathing support, and return visits to the ER.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Implementation of the CAEP Acute Heart Failure Best Practices Checklist, a behavioral intervention to guide emergency department care
- What this could lead to
- If the checklist improves patient management and outcomes, it could lead to widespread adoption in emergency departments across Canada, potentially reducing deaths and hospital readmissions.
- What could go wrong
- This is a pilot feasibility study with only 4 hospitals, so results may not apply broadly. The checklist's success depends on doctors actually changing their behavior, which can be challenging.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4E9, Canada
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