Headlamps Attract HUGE Bugs: And other essential lessons learned from a public health research project in the deep Amazon Jungle

Headlamps Attract HUGE Bugs: And other essential lessons learned from a public health research project in the deep Amazon Jungle

Deep jungle locations without electricity or running water pose several barriers to conducting public health research. While conducting a double-blind, placebo controlled randomized study on tuberculosis and intestinal parasites, I learned so much more about how to conduct research in a deep jungle setting than I did about my specific research question.  How to conduct research without electricity or running water, how to explain medication dosage local terms, how to select a random sample of households when there are no local census records or addresses….and the houses float and change location during the rainy season – these are all skills that one may need when conducting remote jungle research.  I also made the “jungle rookie” mistake of designing a study that excluded women that were pregnant or breastfeeding.  In a setting that is extremely resource poor and lacks medication or access to contraception, then the vast majority of women in the community were either pregnant or breastfeeding from puberty to menopause.  A deep jungle public health study will affect every aspect of the research from study design, methods, and population sampling. Some lessons can be learned from careful preparation and research before entering the jungle.  And others you learn the first night put your solar powered headlamp on your head and realize that HUGE bugs are attracted to your forehead.