The protection of human subjects lies at the heart of any research project

The protection of human subjects lies at the heart of any research project. Part of this protection entails the need to obtain informed consent. A female nurse wants to do a qualitative study investigating what it means for males to live with diabetes mellitus and the resultant impotence. Qualitative research usually involves interviewing the human subject, and sexual impotence is a particularly sensitive subject. How should the nurse explain the study to her potential sample to ensure that the consent is truly informed and that the subjects will not drop out of the study because of extreme discomfort during the interview? What are the ethical issues involved?