Returning to Field Research in South Africa: Q&A with Jacob Bor

Over two years after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, people across professions have found new ways of conducting their work while adapting to the challenges of the virus. With many countries lifting restrictions on international travel, scholars engaged in research projects abroad have welcomed the opportunity to return to the field.

In October 2021, Human Capital Initiative Associate Director Mahesh Karra traveled to Malawi and answered questions about his experience resuming field research in a world altered by the pandemic. Following Karra’s trip, HCI Core Faculty Member Jacob Bor visited South Africa in February 2022 after a two-year hiatus from travel. Bor is an epidemiologist and global health expert whose projects apply economics and data science to the study of population health, with a focus on HIV treatment and prevention in southern Africa.

Below, Bor responds to questions about his return to the field and shares the one policy change he would make overnight:

Q: You recently returned from conducting field research in South Africa. What project or projects were you conducting fieldwork for, and what was the planning process like?

JB: I lead two projects in South Africa in collaboration with Dr. Dorina Onoya at the Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO) in South Africa. The first is a collaboration with South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), which is a centralized laboratory system that conducts all lab monitoring for the public sector health system. We are working with them to improve record linkage within their data systems to enable longitudinal follow-up of patients. Linkage of the NHLS database offers unique opportunities for clinical and policy research as well as for patient care. While in South Africa, I was able to work side-by-side with database developers and administrators at the NHLS to implement linkage strategies we previously developed and validated. I was also able to work closely with our project team in South Africa, which is working on several analyses based on these data.

The second project is an intervention study that seeks to deliver accurate scientific information on the prevention benefits of HIV treatment to people living with HIV as part of routine HIV counseling. The intervention, developed in collaboration with people living with HIV, clinicians and civil society groups, will share testimonials from seven individuals who have used HIV treatment to prevent viral transmission. While in South Africa, I was able to meet with our study partners, hold operational and scientific workshops with the study team and observe the filming of some of the intervention videos.

Q: When you arrived, was the experience of conducting research overseas different from your previous trips? Did you have to adjust your research methods to account for the COVID-19 pandemic?

JB: Being back in the field was a tremendous lift to me personally as well as for the projects. To be clear, my teams have been lucky. Over the past two years, we have been able to work effectively through routine Zoom meetings. As an international collaborator in these projects, I have been able to participate in a larger share of meetings than I was able to before the pandemic. Still, I’m not sure I realized before my trip how much I was missing the personal contact and connection. Returning to the field enabled me to make stronger personal connections with collaborators, including members of our study teams I had only ever met virtually. It also enabled a surge in productivity on our projects that has created significant momentum. The trip was very rewarding.

Q: During the pandemic, you continued to publish prolifically, and are listed as a contributing author on over 20 studies throughout the past year. How were you able to maintain your research output despite the challenges of the pandemic?

JB: I’m not going to lie, dealing with remote schooling for my eight-year-old was no joke, and my productivity suffered along with that of many of my colleagues. However, I think the pandemic highlighted the importance of collaborative research. Nearly all my research involves close collaboration with multiple coauthors. Sometimes, these are students or fellows, and sometimes they are faculty at BU, at other institutions or abroad. These collaborations mean you can take turns carrying the load and moving things forward.

One of the silver linings of the pandemic was that suddenly, nearly all my BU colleagues were thinking about the same issue (COVID-19), regardless of their usual research interests. This convergence of interests led to some fruitful collaborations and stronger relationships with my colleagues.

Q: How important is it to have local partners when conducting research in other countries or communities?

JB: Local partners are absolutely indispensable. The only reason my international research continued over the last two years is thanks to my close collaboration with researchers at NHLS, HE2RO and at the Africa Health Institute (AHRI) in South Africa. I would stress the importance not just of having local project implementation teams, but also local researchers as principal investigators who can contribute to the project at the highest levels and who understand the local context, as well as the scientific literature.

Q: Now that you’re back, what are you going to do with the information gathered on your trip?

JB: The projects I was working on are long term collaborations, which were certainly advanced through the trip. I would say that the primary function of this trip was not data collection so much as mentoring local research colleagues in South Africa, especially the junior members of our study teams. These South African colleagues are now leading analyses that will result in academic papers that my research partner Dorina Onoya and I are mentoring them on.

Q: Why is fieldwork important to the research process? Do you have any advice for other scholars planning to return to the field during the pandemic?

JB: I think fieldwork is important because relationships are important. Much of scientific collaboration, like any other field, is based on trusting relationships. Without personal interaction, it is harder to build trust, to identify shared goals and to determine collectively how to work towards them. I don’t believe for a second that spending a few weeks in another country makes me an expert in that country. But it does allow me to build collaborative relationships with people who are experts in that setting and to learn more about the context for our research.

Q: If you could make one policy change overnight, what would it be?

JB: Let’s be topical. Recently, the United States Congress decided not to pass President Biden’s proposed COVID-19 relief bill. That bill included $5 billion for global vaccination efforts. Last September, the US committed to help vaccinate the world. $5 billion is not enough, but it is a start. If we do not uphold this commitment, we are going to see needless deaths worldwide and the emergence of new, dangerous variants from places where COVID-19 continues to circulate unchecked. Fully funding global vaccine efforts would be practical, cost-effective and just.

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