In addition to completing clinical training in Internal Medicine, Respirology, Critical Care and Lung Transplantation, Karen Burns completed a Master’s Degree in Health, Research and Methodology. She has developed a ‘program of research’ focusing on characterizing practice pattern variation in weaning critically ill adults from invasive mechanical ventilation, on national and international levels, and evaluating strategies to reduce weaning practice variation. Her research program includes small and large scale observational studies, national and international surveys, and a multicentre pilot randomized controlled trial. Other research interests include consent issues in critical care research, surrogate decision-making, and meta-analyses of mechanical ventilation applications.