Approaches for establishing trust and alleviating stress during the surrogate informed consent process for critical care research

BACKGROUND: Trust with researchers is a consideration among surrogate decision makers (SDMs) who are approached to provide consent for research participation on behalf of critically ill patients. However, little is known about strategies that researchers can use to build trust with SDMs and alleviate stress when making these decisions. RESEARCH QUESTION: What are the best approaches to building trust and alleviating stress that can be used in …