Friday afternoon’s funny – Suspended
There is so much we could say about this humorous Don Mayne cartoon, but it does give us an opportunity to grumble about withdrawal of consent forms. Participants should not be expected to complete a form to indicate that they wish to withdraw from a project. We shouldn’t make it any harder than a participant voicing that they do not wish to continue with a project. Even though the NHMRC was not courageous here (we debated for a while using stronger language here), we think it is poor ethical practice to expect participants to do more to be able to exit from a project. Especially, when the research procedures make it hard for a participant to complete a form (though hopefully not hung from the ceiling).