Most of the work I do with SNEHA is within an academic capacity, literature reviews, analyzing data, and research meetings.My supervisor, Neena, felt it would be important for me to go into the field in order to ensure that I do not become too far removed from the people who these interventions are directed towards.

The project I have been working on is based on data collected over a period of many months.Anytime a child is born or dies in the areas where the organization works, an interview is taken by a woman who lives within the area.The case where it is a death is called a verbal autopsy.I accompanied the supervisor on one such interview, in the case where a baby girl had died.

As I have previously written about, much of Mumbai is slums - but there is a world of difference between walking through it, and being invited into the lives and homes of those who live here.We wandered in small alleys, hopping over the small pools of water that had gathered in the lanes.There was no space between the buildings, each room containing a family, where there was open space it was filled with playing children.

We first entered the home of the field interviewer.A pleasant looking woman in her forties, she welcomed us and her son fetched chairs from a neighboring home for us to sit on.I inquired about her children, some of whom were taking a nap on the floor.She proudly told me about her seven children, and what grades they were in.While the room they lived in was fairly small - maybe 8x10 feet, it was clean - and all of the children looked healthy and certainly happy.While they were fasting (it is Ramadan), she insisted we should have some refreshments in her home.She asked me several times if I would have some tea or coffee, or at the least a cold mango drink from around the corner.

After chatting for a little while we headed for our interview.We met with a young woman and her sister-in laws to take the verbal autopsy. I read about thirty such cases a week, but to hear the story from the mother herself was a new experience.She got married as a teenager, and is pregnant with her third child.This autopsy is for her last pregnancy, a still born girl.In this case, it was a home birth where a traditional birth attendant (a dai) was present.She told us the baby was born perfect, no sign of illness, but that she must have died just prior to delivery.After the routine form was filled out, we asked some questions (I asked about why they had a home birth) and we left.There was also a domestic violence interview to be done, but as the woman's family was sitting with her there was a chance she would be unable to discuss such issues with her and a time was set to return for more discussion.In this instance it was not a difficult interview, though there are many cases though where the mother becomes very upset in talking about the death of her child and the interviewer has to comfort her.

There are such cases where the interviewer has to step in and try and act as a facilitator where there are problems within the family.The interview done prior to the one I participated in was with a young woman who was forced to marry her rapist.In these cases the interviewer then may try and get the couple to attend counseling or to offer legal aid to the woman if she chooses to leave the marriage.These cases are not the norm, but they do happen and the organization tries to help women on a case by case basis while collecting data to deal with systemic health issues.

My supervisor was quite right in sending me into the field, there are some things which simply cannot be learned from a book and the understanding which comes from interaction is vital to continuing with such work.