From 2014 to 2017 I was the leader for Northwestern University’s program, “Field Research in Public Health: Tanzania.” It was an annual, 8-week program operated collaboratively between Northwestern University (NU), the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), and local government officials in Meru District, about 20 kilometers to the east of Arusha, in the north of the country.
Built on principles of equity, deep cultural exchange, and collaboration, this experiential program provided students from both universities an opportunity to learn what it means to work and live together across differences.
NU students partnered and lived communally with undergraduates from UDSM, undertaking qualitative community health research on public health topics selected by the local community. The NU students received an intensive course in Swahili, and participants visited various sites important to understanding health in the district, such as health facilities, local healers, and sites demonstrating linkages between environment and health.
2017 program participants. L to R back to front: Noelle Sullivan, Christopher Bayston (NU), Zachary Hennenfent (NU), Evelyne Kivuyo (UDSM), Willow Pastard (NU), Sam Rudnick (NU), Celestine Emberton (NU), Chen Chen (NU), Jesca Mbilinyi (UDSM), Daniel Chombo (UDSM), Rashid Salum (UDSM), Hayley Platt (NU).
Students were then divided into research teams, and, with significant mentoring throughout the program, designed and conducted collaborative qualitative community health research within villages in Meru District.
At the end of the program, the research teams wrote reports on their findings in Swahili and English, presented their results back to community leaders, and fielded questions. The reports on the students’ collaborative work could then be used to inform healthcare provision and overall community health, as decided by government and local leaders.
Noelle Sullivan, Ph.D. 