Table 1

Questionnaire items (in order of appearance) and respective percentage of answers obtained


Total (N = 214)
Acute coronary syndrome subgroup (n = 158)*
Acute stroke subgroup (n = 54)*

What was the scope of the trial information and how was it delivered to trial participants?**



     all-embracing information, verbal + written***
53.3%
47.5%
70.4%
     abbreviated information, verbal and written
38.8%
41.8%
29.6%
     all-embracing verbal + abbreviated written information***
15.0%
14.6%
13.0%
     abbreviated verbal + all-embracing written information***
10.7%
12.0%
7.4%
     abbreviated verbal information only
4.2%
4.4%
3.7%
     proxy consent (by guardianship court) only
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%

Did you additionally seek consent of participants' relative(s), if available?



     yes, always
18.3%
9.5%
44.4%
     yes, sometimes
43.7%
41.4%
48.1%
     rarely or exceptionally
25.3%
32.5%
5.6%
     never
12.7%
16.6%
1.9%

Following enrolment, did you inform participants' relative(s), if available, about their trial participation?



     yes, always
54.2%
43.0%
87.0%
     yes, sometimes
33.7%
41.8%
11.1%
     rarely or exceptionally
9.8%
12.7%
1.9%
     never
2.3%
2.5%
0.0%

Did the involvement of a participant's relative(s) influence the time necessary to obtain informed consent?



     yes, delayed
55.6%
55.1%
57.4%
     yes, shortened
6.6%
6.3%
7.4%
     no influence
29.4%
27.8%
35.2%
     not applicable (no involvement)
8.4%
10.8%
0.0%

How do patients react to a trial proposal in an emergency condition?



     positively/somewhat positively
65.7%
61.1%
77.8%
     equal proportions for positive and negative responses
29.1%
33.8%
16.7%
     negatively/somewhat negatively
1.0%
1.3%
0.0%
     uncertain
4.2%
3.8%
5.5%

Is an emergency (conscious) patient able to understand the nature of the trial and consciously decide whether or not to participate?



     always/most often
32.3%
31.7%
33.3%
     some patients are able
46.7%
43.0%
59.3%
     no or few patients are able
17.3%
20.9%
5.6%
     uncertain
3.7%
4.4%
1.8%

How much of the verbal information received by the patient is really understood?



     all/almost all
32.9%
33.8%
31.5%
     some
58.2%
58.6%
55.5%
     almost none
1.9%
2.5%
0.0%
     uncertain
7.0%
5.1%
13.0%

How much of the written trial information does an emergency patient actually read?



     all/almost all
14.5%
13.3%
18.5%
     some
62.1%
62.0%
61.1%
     almost none
19.2%
21.5%
13.0%
     uncertain
4.2%
3.2%
7.4%

The amount of information supposed to be given to patient was, in general:



     too comprehensive
80.4%
85.4%
64.8%
     adequate in regard to the patient's condition
17.7%
13.3%
31.5%
     too brief
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
     uncertain
1.9%
1.3%
3.7%

How does a trial proposal to an emergency patient affect their trust in the physician?



     increases trust
26.3%
27.4%
24.1%
     neither increases nor decreases trust
48.3%
49.0%
46.3%
     decreases trust
9.9%
10.2%
9.2%
     uncertain
15.5%
13.4%
20.4%

Does informing a participant's relative(s) about their trial participation make sense at all?



     yes
68.1%
63.3%
83.0%
     no
12.7%
14.6%
5.7%
     uncertain
19.2%
22.1%
11.3%

Which of the following models of informed consent in emergency settings would be the best?



     all-embracing information (like non-emergency trials), verbal and written***
14.0%
11.4%
22.2%
     abbreviated information, verbal and written + abbreviated consent form, with obligatory all-embracing written consent to continue the trial once the participant's status has sufficiently improved (ICH GCP-based)***
78.0%
81.7%
66.7%
     abbreviated oral information + only verbal consent, with obligatory all-embracing written consent to continue the trial once the participant's status has sufficiently improved (currently unrealistic under national regulations)***
7.5%
6.3%
11.1%
     other model
0.5%
0.6%
0.0%

* two respondents declaring experience with both acute coronary syndrome and stroke trials were not taken into account for subgroup analysis

** multiple choice possible; all other items were single choice

*** embracing all aspects required by Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and law for a regular trial

Iwanowski et al. Trials 2008 9:45   doi:10.1186/1745-6215-9-45