Dori-Ann Martin

My research focuses on consent and assent within the pediatric critical care environment. Improving the potential first point of contact with research, can have impact on all future research for the patient and family. Consent is required for most research and is when a parent or caregiver provides permission for their child to participate in research. When children come to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) this can be a very challenging time. Needing to balance the need for consent with the stress families are under upon presentation to the Intensive Care Unit is the focus of my research. Another area of focus for my research is on bringing a new tool to assess how awake a child is in the PICU to frontline nurses’. This neurological assessment tool can help nurses assess a patient but also to communicate these findings accurately with the care team. We are researching whether this assessment has impacts on patient care. Also, in my role within the PICU at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, I support research that focuses on improving outcomes for patient's and families during critical illness and following for a variety of conditions.