title: Patient advocacy: witnessing informed consent for research in acute care.
abstract: Two views exist about witnessing informed consent for research in acute care settings: nurses witness a signature, and nurses witness the informed consent itself. Nurses are obligated to fulfill legal responsibilities and ethical expectations because of their role in the clinical arena, and to serve as advocates for patients to be informed, willing research participants. This role promotes change in institutional policies to keep up with the changing face of research.
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
authors.forename: Julia A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Goodwin
mesh_terms: D032962:Consent Forms; D006291:Health Policy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D024802:Nurse's Role / Q000523:psychology; D009729:Nursing / Q000592:standards*; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D012106:Research