The evaluation process...

The past two weeks in Kyenjojo District have been really interesting. The purpose of this trip has been twofold: to evaluate the Bodas for Life project first, and then to try to create a sustainability strategy if it is deemed beneficial. Both of these tasks are challenging, particularly because there is no real control group and it is difficult in any instance to evaluate health outcomes over a short timespan. But we have been doing the best we can, crunching data about utilization of both the program and the health centers to which we are trying to provide improved access. It's been both exciting and frustrating, because although I have a gut instinct that the program is at least doing SOME good, I have no idea how to definitively show it or to quantify it. Also, I'm not sure if the resources injected into the project justify the outcome. In any case, we have another week to analyze the data and try to come to some conclusion.

The whole exercise reminds me what I love about development work, and what makes it so challenging and interesting to me-- there is so much potential for impact, but you have to be creative about how you implement projects. A clear baseline is necessary in order to properly evaluate a project, and evaluation measures need to be in place BEFORE the project begins. Everyone who works in development knows these things, but often they don't happen for various reasons-- the project needs to be implemented in a hurry, funding is limited, etc. It's very complicated, even for a simple and subtle project like Bodas for Life.

I've also confirmed that I want to further explore the role of technology in development. This has always been what I wanted to do, given my engineering and development backgrounds, but I am learning more firsthand that this field is perfect for me. I think I will get the chance to explore both technology and health at Bain, so hopefully it will be a perfect learning opportunity for me.

But now it's the weekend, and I'm on my way to see Stella. A total different experience, but just as great! Stay tuned for cute kid pics!