# Electronic Health Record Nudges to Improve Quality of Care in Heart Failure

> **NIH NIH K23** · NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY · 2023 · $187,071

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/NARRATIVE
This career development award will provide Dr. Faraz Ahmad with the opportunity to become an independent
physician-scientist who develops and implements health information technologies that increase the uptake of
evidence-based therapies and improve the quality of life and longevity for patients with heart failure. Dr. Ahmad
is a practicing heart failure cardiologist and informaticist with a current research focus on the methodology of
integrating diverse electronic health data to measure quality of care. This award will provide rigorous training in
dissemination and implementation science, clinical decision support, and pragmatic clinical trial methodology
that will enable him to design and test digital interventions to improve care quality. The training program
includes the development of independent investigator skills required to lead interdisciplinary teams and mentor
the next-generation of biomedical informatics and implementation science researchers. He will achieve these
career goals through a comprehensive training program that combines intensive mentorship, formal
coursework, workshops, conferences, and experiential learning. His primary mentor is Dr. Abel Kho, an expert
in biomedical informatics, electronic clinical decision support tools, and quality improvement with an extensive
record of mentoring. In addition, Dr. Donald Lloyd-Jones, one of the leaders in cardiovascular epidemiology
with an exemplary mentorship record, will serve as a co-mentor and oversee Dr. Ahmad’s training in the
essential skills of becoming a productive, independent physician-scientist. Finally, co-mentor Dr. J.D. Smith, an
established mentor and implementation science methodologist, will provide expertise in pragmatic trial
methodology. The rich resource environment of Northwestern University will facilitate the success of this
proposed training and research project and includes: 1) dedicated support from the Department of Medicine
and the Center for Health Information Partnerships; 2) an interdisciplinary team of mentors, advisors, and
collaborators; 3) extensive skill courses, workshops, and seminars 4) research infrastructure including the
world class, integrated Northwestern Medicine Electronic Data Warehouse, data analytics, and biostatistical
support; and 5) support from a large, integrated academic health center and the Northwestern Medicine Quality
Innovation Center. The overall purpose of the research is to pilot test a set of clinical decision support nudges
to push clinicians to increase prescription and titration of evidence-based therapies for patients with heart
failure with reduced ejection fraction, a highly morbid, prevalent, and costly condition with enormous gaps in
quality of care. Specific Aim One will evaluate barriers to high quality of care for patients with heart failure and
identify components of an ideal health information technology tool via a mixed methods approach in primary
care and cardiology practices...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10686009
- **Project number:** 5K23HL155970-03
- **Recipient organization:** NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Faraz Shafique Ahmad
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $187,071
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-08-06 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10686009

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10686009, Electronic Health Record Nudges to Improve Quality of Care in Heart Failure (5K23HL155970-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10686009. Licensed CC0.

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