Pictographs in electronic health records aim to stop wrong-patient errors in newborn ICUs
NCT ID NCT03960099
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether showing a simple pictograph (a picture symbol like a rainbow or lion) in the electronic health record helps doctors and nurses avoid placing orders for the wrong baby in the NICU. Over 6,000 newborns and their clinicians at three hospitals will be randomly assigned to see the pictograph or not. The goal is to reduce wrong-patient order errors, which can be dangerous for fragile newborns.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- pictographs (simple picture symbols) displayed in the electronic health record
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could provide a simple, low-cost way to prevent dangerous medical mix-ups in newborn intensive care units.
- What could go wrong
- This is a behavioral intervention, not a drug or device, so its effect may be modest. The trial is still recruiting, and results may not apply to all hospitals or patient groups.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 6,250 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Mar 2022
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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Children (under 18), adults (18 to 64) and older adults (65 and over)
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * All infants receiving care in the study NICUs for whom an order was placed during the study period. * All clinicians with the authority to place electronic orders in the NICU and who placed electronic orders during the study period. Exclusion Criteria: * None
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Brigham and Women's Hospital
COMPLETEDBoston, Massachusetts, 02115, United States
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Johns Hopkins Medicine
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGBaltimore, Maryland, 21287, United States
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Montefiore Medical Center
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGThe Bronx, New York, 10461, United States
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New York-Presbyterian Hospital
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10032, United States
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