Interviews at the International Traditional Healers' Council of Malawi

Ndirande, Malawi

Today was an exciting day. We drove from Limbe to Ndirande District.
Ndirande is pretty intense. There are lots and lots of people and narrow dirt roads streets with lots of cars, mini buses, and pedestrians. I don't think I mentioned this before but you drive on the left side of the road, which makes me uneasy as I always feel that we are going down the wrong side of the road.

We arrived at the headquarters of the International Traditional Healers' Council of Malawi at about 9:00 a.m. Edgar (one of our Malawian research team members) and I walked into a small room where we were greeted by traditional doctors and their office staff. The organization was first registered in 1963. The office room is quite small and dark. We spent about 3 1/2 hours interviewing the traditional doctors. I would love to discuss what we were told but I think it¹s best to wait until I get more data. Suffice it to say we obtained a lot of information, and I am flooded with waves of emotion. I was surprised, pleased, curious, scared, and
skeptical all at the same time by what I was told. I interviewed 2 doctors
in English, and Edgar interviewed 2 doctors in Chichewa. All went well, and we have 4 interviews planned for tomorrow. I would say it was a productive day!

Now the next step in the research process is to type up my interviews, at least the ones I did in English, and write up what we call field notes that describe what I saw, felt, and thought about during the process. The interviews conducted in Chichewa need to be transcribed in English and then typed, which is a long and laborious process. Well, as the old saying goes, "no pain no gain" ­ such is the process of qualitative research.