ABSTRACT
T here is a need for continuedinvestigation to improve theefficacy and safety of acutecare medicine. Many current therapies either are poorly supported by evidence or continue to have unsatisfactory outcomes (1-4). Some acute care studies require a waiver of informed consent, because patients requiring such care are often unconscious or incapacitated by their injuries. Proxy consent is not always obtainable in these circumstances. Legally authorized representatives are not always at the hospital, and the time required to contact a proxy may exceed a narrow time frame, the "therapeutic window," in which an experimental therapy might be effective.
