“Assoc Professor Sri Chander Tikamdas’ advice was very valuable. He shared with me some tools that he had used in his previous projects, and constantly helped me reframe my research project when things didn’t go according to plan. Having worked all around the world for over 30 years, his real-life experiences working in areas with different sociocultural norms provided precious insight into how I should handle my own project overseas.”
Apart from the networks with the faculty, Dr Tyebally also spoke of the value of the networks he had formed from years of regional work. Previously, most of his work had been with local NGOs, facilitated by the SingHealth International Collaboration Office and the Singapore International Foundation. However, when he realised the importance of an academic partner to move forward, he requested for help from his existing NGO partners, who swiftly reached out to their networks and connected him to his co-PI, who is an academic at Airlangga University.
“This really speaks of the power of networks,” concludes Dr Tyebally. “Even the team that we hired on the ground – the data scientists, interviewers, translators – those were arranged by my co-PI, whom I met during my previous projects overseas. Those links that we formed through the years were what allowed all this to happen.”
Lessons from Overseas
Dr Tyebally spoke of the many roadblocks he met with along the way and how they taught him to be adaptable, instilling in him the understanding that one cannot use one’s local norms as a benchmark and expect them to be the same overseas.
“Doing Global Health work teaches you how to cope with the same situations but without all the support you might be used to. You need to be flexible, you need to think about alternatives, you need to go back to basic clinical principles. That’s good training,” he said, emphasising the lessons that can be learnt on resource utilisation and thinking through things creatively rather than following protocols.
“Being an SDGHI Fellow and undertaking the Master of Public Health provided me with tools and skills that are useful for any form of planning, in whatever project is done,” said Dr Tyebally. “Proper design, implementation, and monitoring are crucial to the success of a project. Whatever I learnt will help me in my continuous mission to improve health outcomes not only overseas, but in Singapore as well.”