• Natasha A Jawa, J Gordon Boyd, David M Maslove, Stephen H Scott, and Samuel A Silver.
• Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6, Canada.
• Postgrad Med J. 2023 Aug 22; 99 (1175): 103310421033-1042.

AbstractClinical research must balance the need for ambitious recruitment with protecting participants' autonomy; a requirement of which is informed consent. Despite efforts to improve the informed consent process, participants are seldom provided sufficient information regarding research, hindering their ability to make informed decisions. These issues are particularly pervasive among patients experiencing acute illness or neurological impairment, both of which may impede their capacity to provide consent. There is a critical need to understand the components, requirements, and methods of obtaining true informed consent to achieve the vast numbers required for meaningful research. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the tenets underlying informed consent in research, including the assessment of capacity to consent, considerations for patients unable to consent, when to seek consent from substitute decision-makers, and consent under special circumstances. Various methods for obtaining informed consent are addressed, along with strategies for balancing recruitment and consent.© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Postgraduate Medical Journal. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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