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Research is NEVER Only about Research ——Sharing my Fieldwork Experience in Kenya

Research is NEVER Only about Research ——Sharing my Fieldwork Experience in Kenya. Shangzhi Xiong (Benson) 12 th September 2018. Roadmap. 01. Brief Intro to the Research. Fieldwork Challenges and Anecdotes. 02. Lessons Learnt. 03. My Fieldwork Research. Title

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Research is NEVER Only about Research ——Sharing my Fieldwork Experience in Kenya

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  1. Research is NEVER Only about Research ——Sharing my Fieldwork Experience in Kenya Shangzhi Xiong (Benson) 12th September 2018

  2. Roadmap 01 Brief Intro to the Research Fieldwork Challenges and Anecdotes 02 Lessons Learnt 03

  3. My Fieldwork Research • Title The Relationship between Family Support and Medication Adherence among Hypertensive Patients in Kenya • Background • Hypertension is an increasing threat; • Poor control of hypertension: non-adherence; • Potential mechanism: family support • Study Design Mixed-method: Qualitative Follow-up Model • Quantitative: questionnaires (family support*2, medication adherence*3, demographics, disease and health profile, medication profile) • Qualitative: individual interviews (semi-structured, thematic analysis) • Results • Very high family support • Very poor medication adherence • No significant association between them (but with trends) • Discussions: A picture deleted here forconfidentiality reasons.

  4. Fieldwork Experience Three Challenges and Two Anecdotes

  5. Challenge 1 Three-Month Wait for IRB Approvals… All the Approvals We Needed to Obtain Started in late April (local) Arrived in Kenya in late May Approved on 3rd August 4th August: first day of data collection! A picture deleted here forconfidentiality reasons.

  6. Challenge 2Kenyan General Election Disturbances and 11 Days Indoor First Day of Data Collection: 4th August. Next day: Election Week (Election day: 8th) Public transportation suspended, our RAs back to hometown, hospitals not responding, and street protests and violence By 13th August, 16 people killed in street protests (https://www.pulse.ng/news/world.html) Constant support from DKU and Duke International Travelling Office Data collection resumed on 17th August

  7. Challenge 3 Small Number of Patients in the Hospitals One or two patients a day being the normal By 24th August, 50 questionnaires and 4 interviews (100 and 20 being the goal) Changed the flight, extended my stay for another week, changed data collection sites, found a local mobilizer, allocated work for RAs with support from David (first left) In the end, we got 104 questionnaires and 20 interviews A picture deleted here for privacy reasons.

  8. Anecdote 1 Communicating with local Kenyan People A woman for her mother… A young man for MD… A mother’s fear… A father feeling guilty… And, the kind man.

  9. Anecdote 2 Travelling in Kenya • The Maasai Mara Safari; • The Great Migration; • The Great Rift Valley; • The Nakuru Lake; • Local villages, urban slums…

  10. Lessons Learnt • The greatest lesson: Research is never only about research. • Research is about people: • Their stories, their culture, their happiness and sorrow; • Research is about marketing: • Be your own advocate and build collaborations; • Research needs to handle with bureaucracy: • Be patient, keep pushing, and play their games; • Research needs to handle with disturbances: • Have faith, stay connected, and stay safe; • And then, it is about research: • Make it good and learn a lot. Be mindful about your VISA!!

  11. How the Fieldwork Changed my Life • A thesis and a manuscript under development. • Research skills: • Literature review, research design, questionnaire design, statistics, qualitative analysis, software using (STATA, NVIVO, Excel), team communications, academic writing. Knowledge on Hypertension, family support, medication adherence… • 3. MOST IMPORTANTLY, it helped me confirm my passion in global health research.

  12. Acknowledgements • Primary Supervisor: Prof. Lijing Yan • Thesis Committee: Lijing Yan, Truls Ostbye, Michael Olsen, Xuefeng Zhong • Local Supervisor: Caroline Wainaina • Local Host Organization: African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) • Colleagues: Shujun Fan, Linda, Catherine, David • Partner Facilities: LungaLunga Hospital, Korogocho Health Center, UhaiNeema Hospital • Logistics: Shuyu Guan, Bingyi Wang,JingjingXu • IRB: Prof. Don Snow (DKU), APHRC, AMREF, Nairobi County Health Office • Most importantly: All my professors and peers of Duke Kunshan University Thank you for your time!

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