I have returned to England after spending 18 weeks in Tokyo conducting fieldwork, which included observations, audio recordings, one-to-one interviews, focus groups, and reviewing local sources. Combined with my preliminary fieldwork, I spent a total of six months collecting data. I also sent a box of books from Japan to my address in England.
At the beginning, I only had a few contacts, and the data collection schedules were not fixed. I focused on establishing a rapport with one participant first and had as many face-to-face meetings as possible. Eventually, he helped me recruit further participants and expand the research locations. The physician, my first contact, was a great help to me in conducting the research, taking me to seminars and workshops, and sharing many sources. Without his support, my fieldwork would not have been a success.
The experience of visiting patients in their homes and listening to them as a researcher was very precious, shaping my perspectives on elderly care and palliative care, as well as on the roles of family, health professionals, and social health systems.
This week, while taking some much-needed rest at home, I also spent four days cleaning the house, shopping for household items and food, organising my desk and bookshelves, and preparing for Luca’s birthday.
Luca’s birthday
On Saturday, I baked a carrot cake, and we had a little celebration dinner with his mum.
On Sunday, the three of us had breakfast, walked around the town eating ice cream and bought some new furniture for our place. In the evening, Luca and I had another birthday dinner.
My achievements in Week 70
- finished deep-cleaning the house and organised my desk area
Goals for Week 71
- update my fieldwork report
- start transcribing the data
- start working on my chapters again
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