Feasibility and efficacy of verbal consents.
Refusal rates for participation in geriatric research have been surprisingly high. This may be due in part to inherent difficulties with a written consent procedure. A simple, easily administered, standardized verbal consent procedure (VCP) for the institutionalized elderly was developed to address this problem. Of 114 patients eligible for enrollment in a study evaluating outcomes of group psychotherapy, 100 gave verbal consent. When written consent was requested, 60 signed immediately; 35, only after substantial coaxing. Five patients refused to sign a consent form, although verbally agreeing to participate. It is estimated that the number of study participants would have been reduced by 40% had written consent been required. The findings raise ethical and logistical issues pertaining to a verbal consent procedure.
Brod
M S
MS
Center for Aging Services Research, State University of New York, Stony Brook.
Feinbloom
R I
RI
D035841:Behavioral Research; D032962:Consent Forms; D005853:Geriatrics; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D012106:Research; D035842:Research Subjects; D013060:Speech; D036302:Therapeutic Human Experimentation; D014956:Writing