The challenges of PICU research: Lessons learned from a minimal-risk study with PICU parents

Abstract

Research conducted in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) with families is essential to advancing evidenced-based practice and improving patient outcomes in this unique setting. However, several ethical, logistical, and methodological challenges have been cited in the literature as having a significant effect on the development of PICU research. Investigators at a large midwestern health care center encountered several challenges during the course of a minimal-risk, survey-based study with parents of PICU patients. This manuscript aims to highlight the challenges faced by the research team, which included challenges related to the environment of the PICU, the patients' length of stay, the health status of the patient, and the etiology of the patient's admission, as well as share the actions that the research team took to address these challenges.

Keywords: Intensive care; Parents; Pediatrics; Subject recruitment.