It is hard to believe it has only been about a week since I arrived. Not only has a lot happened, but a lot has changed. The need for flexibility and adaptability while working here is an absolute must.

I suppose the first big change was when my project did a complete 180˚ turn back in April. It was originally meant to be an exposure assessment study of asbestos fibres in the communities surrounding the shipbreaking yards in Chittagong, a bustling southern port city. During a feasibility trip in April, I ran up against a few barriers, the greatest being the shipyard managers’ distrust of foreigners. Although the exposure assessment was not meant to take place in the yards, rather, the in communities surrounding the yards, the yard managers’ influence extended into these communities and it was clear we were not welcome. The study at this point took on a new shape. It became a health outcome study of asbestosis in migrant shipbreakers who had returned to their home communities of Bogra, an impoverished, rural, northern district in Bangladesh. I was very pleased with the outcome and realized how important this two week trip in April had been. We met key people such as the Bogra district civil surgeon, the district’s top health official, and without it, I can only imagine how far I would be set back on this trip, although this trip has not been without its barriers either.
The plan was to head up to Bogra after a couple of days in Dhaka for the field work which would take approximately three months (Sept-Nov), and spend the last month (Dec) in Dhaka to introduce bulk asbestos identification to faculty and students at NIPSOM. We realized I would be starting the field work towards the end of the wet season, and at the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, but so far there had been no major floods up north and although people fast during Ramadan, working-life continues and so it was not perceived to be a huge problem.

The day I left Vancouver, Bihar, a region of India right by northwestern Bangladesh where I was to go, experienced some of the worst flooding in 50 years. Quite a bit of the excess water, inevitably, flowed into Bangladesh and I had to face the reality that it would affect my study location, situated on the banks of the Jamuna River (a branch of the mighty Brahmaputra River). Already, a couple of days on Bangladeshi soil and we needed to do some serious rearranging. The main worry was that even if flooding was not severe, people would scatter in anticipation of floods and I would not be able to locate them. I decided not to leave for Bogra right away, and my worst worries were confirmed when a flood control dam was breached and hundreds became homeless.

Flooding is a regular occurrence in Bangladesh, a major delta, and news of it makes headlines, but it doesn’t come as a shock to anyone. All I was advised to not worry, that “This is not like Katrina”, and just to wait it out a bit; all should be dry and back to normal in a few weeks. Consequently, I have moved the asbestos identification training up to the first few weeks here in Dhaka, and my field work in Bogra has been shifted to October right after the Eid holiday, which marks the end of Ramadan.

This now leaves me 10 weeks in Bogra to enroll and interview 100 respondents (see bottom of entry for note on terminology), and no more wiggle room at the end. Otherwise, this was a smart decision. Beginning the field work mid-October means better weather, but also, it coincides with the Aman (wet season) rice harvest, one of three yearly rice harvests, which means most people will be home. Finally, Ramadan will have passed, meaning less hungry respondents who have just finished celebrating Eid, which is kind of like getting together for Christmas.

As I look around me and see Ramadan just kicking into full swing, my field work seems far away. There is always more to prepare, however, and this allows me more time to ensure translations are appropriate for both the consent form and questionnaire, and a chance to pilot test the questionnaire as well.

With that I will end with one of my favourite sayings, something I picked up in Turkey, but because it is an Islamic saying, used in Bangladesh as well. “Inshallah”, or “God willing”. It is used just about all the time, in any situation you find yourself in where you just throw up your arms in defeat and realize that sometimes things are beyond your control and you just have to go with the flow……..

Note: The term “enroll” is used instead of recruit because in Bangladesh, recruit is a term used for men who are selected to work as migrant labourers overseas. Using the term recruit can lead to confusion about my purpose here. “Respondents” is used instead of subjects, as that is the norm for researchers in Bangladesh.