I recently went to Bangladesh to work on a project for the International Breast Cancer Research Foundation (IBCRF). They are doing a clinical trial in Bangladesh (my wife, Heather, is the project manager for this larger study), and she and the project leader, Dr. Richard Love, were looking for ways to inform and motivate women who are experiencing breast problems to attend a local "breast problem clinic" to get checked out (that's where I come in).
When my wife and I lived in Bangladesh in 2000-2001, we saw a performance from a group called Rupantar. "Rupantar," meaning transformation, is an NGO that raises awareness on different women's and other social issues. It also tries to mobilize men and adolescent girls and boys in this process to create a supportive environment for the women. To communicate with rural people, it uses plays and traditional folk songs.
Even though we didn't speak the language, it was a very powerful performance and left a lasting impression on us both. So, I immediately thought Rupantar might be an excellent way to spread the word about these clinics.
Over the past two years, we worked with Rupantar to develop a theory-based pot ("folk") song specifically designed to encourage women who are experiencing breast problems to visit a local breast problem clinic (and also to encourage men to encourage their wives to visit a local clinic if they notice any problems). The performance was guided by the extended parallel process model, and is being evaluated using a posttest-only control-group design in 20 (hopefully) villages in rural Bangladesh.
The pot song is done, the study and survey have been designed, and I went to Bangladesh earlier this month (June 2009) to help make sure everything was in order before we implemented and evaluated it on a larger scale (i.e., I trained the interviewers, observed the first experimental and control performance -- and the data collection that took place afterwards, and conducted a debrief with the interviewers and Rupantar to address any issues that arose). Below are a few images (and one video) from this experience.
