by Dr.Sueppong Gowachirapant
From August 2nd to the 25th (2022), during the rainy season of Thailand, the Thai team completed the data collection for Work Package 2 (WP2) of the RISE project. According to the plan, the dietary assessment of the Karen population in the two study communities was conducted in order to investigate the food and nutrient intake of the participants, as well as their food consumption patterns. In order to obtain this information, 24-hour dietary recall and food frequency questionnaires (FFQ) were used by trained investigators.
Participation in the two study villages in the Lai Wo subdistrict, Koh Sadueng and Sanaephong, was very high. For the Koh Sadueng village, surveyed during August 2nd - 11th, about 72% (107 people) of the eligible population completed the questionnaire. This percentage was even slightly higher for the Sanaephong village, where almost 79% (200 people) participated during the 2-week collection period (August 12th - 25th).
There are several strengths of this study that could help the investigators to easily reach our target population size and carry out the survey as planed: (1) the existing good relationship and connection between the Thai team and the communities from previous studies conducted since 2005; (2) the support from a strong and efficient team of local researchers; and (3) the multi-stakeholder collaboration and support received from all organizations and related local authorities.
On the other hand, our team also found challenges and limitations during the field data collection: 1) the rainy season is an essential cultivation period for the Karen people. This made that most of our target participants stayed at the rice fields in the mountains, far away from their home. (2) The rainy season also makes transportation through the forest roads highly difficult making walking and riding a motorcycle the two only ways for displacement available. (3) Continuous support from a good translator was needed for conducting the interviews due to the difference between Thai and Karen language. (4) Dietary assessment method is a time consuming technique, taking on average about 1.5 - 2 hours per one participant for completion.
FINALLY… MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
We would like to express our sincere thanks to all participants, collaborative organizations, local researchers and the Mahidol research team for their valuable help and encouragement throughout this hard but very rewarding time. Without all their support, we surely could not have made it!
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