Research recruitment practices and critically ill patients. A multicenter, cross-sectional study (the Consent Study).

Rationale: Limited cross-sectional data exist to characterize the challenges of enrolling critically ill patients into research studies.

Objectives: We aimed to describe recruitment practices, document factors that impact recruitment, and identify factors that may enhance future research feasibility.

Methods: We conducted a prospective, observational study of all critically ill adults eligible to participate in research studies at 23 Canadian intensive care units.