Improving care and outcomes for people with Atrial Fibrillation in Nova Scotia
Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is a type of irregular and sometimes rapid heartbeat. People who have AF are at an increased risk of having a stroke or heart disease.
Canadian guidelines are available to help doctors care for patients with AF, but not all patients receive the same care. Past research studies show that some doctors and patients could benefit from better knowledge and improved skills for managing AF. We believe that IMPACT-AF can help. Learn more about AF
107
Primary Care Clinics
1204
Patients with Atrial Fibrillation
204
Primary Care Providers
Web-based health management
In an effort to meet the needs of health professionals and persons living with atrial fibrillation (AF), leading-edge health informatics technologies have been employed to computerize the Canadian AF guidelines and best practice approaches.
The result is a Computerized Decision Support System (CDSS) – a web-based application designed to support the management of AF in the primary care setting.IMPACT-AF Study
A 12-month clinical trial designed to determine if the CDSS is effective in supporting the treatment and management of AF.
Primary outcomes paper
Published in AHA: 2020-06-01, Volume 224, Pages 35-46Additional Publications
Methods Paper
Published in AHJ: Volume 201, July 2018Lessons Learned
Published in Trials volume 22, Article number: 531 (2021)Patient-reported outcomes and experiences
Published in AHJ: August 3, 2021 Vol 10, Issue 15Rhythm Control vs Rate Control
Published in CJC Open, June 2022, Vol 4, Issue 6Investigator Team
The IMPACT-AF Research Team is led by Dr. Jafna Cox, Heart and Stroke Foundation Endowed Chair in Cardiovascular Outcomes, Professor at Dalhousie University, and Staff Cardiologys for the Nova Scotia Health Authority.
Co-investigators specializing in AF research, Health Informatics, Biostatistics, Health Economics and Family Medicine come from NSHA as well as Dalhousie and McMaster Universities.
Dr. Jafna Cox
Primary Investigator
Dr. Raza Abidi
Technical Lead
Dr. Ratika Parkask
Co-Investigator
Dr. Lehana Thabane
Co-Investigator
Dr. Feng Xie
Co-Investigator
Dr. James MacKillop
Co-Investigator
Dr. Samina Abidi
Co-Investigator