Durham SRT Team Focuses on Feasibility

Hoping to learn about safety practices that protect the health of auto mechanics, students learn the steps to building a worthwhile research project.

Student Summer Research - Durham, NC US

By Brynn Meyercord, Dana Otera and Eleanor Seo

Published August 12, 2021, last updated on August 16, 2021 under Student Stories

Duke students Brynn Meyercord, Dana Otera and Eleanor Seo reflect on their summer Student Research Training (SRT) project, which is looking at the potential health impacts of exposure to metals and other environmental contaminants among auto-repair workers in Durham.

Our project aims to document the health and experiences of auto mechanics in Durham, with the goal of writing policy briefs and doing other kinds of advocacy to promote health and safety for these workers. We have encountered various obstacles, but as the summer has progressed, we creatively pivoted and did not let the obstacles hinder our work. Although this process can be trying and at times frustrating, our ability to adapt and move in new directions proves to be a terrific learning experience both educationally and personally.

Much of our effort this summer has been in laying the groundwork for conducting surveys with auto mechanics in the Triangle area. Our team has done a literature review to learn about regulations and regulatory bodies in the auto repair industry, as well as to identify any existing surveys about auto worker and mechanic safety practices.

This study is our team’s introduction into the local auto worker community, and so it is an important step toward building rapport and establishing relationships.

In preparation for field site visits, we rehearsed and refined the questions we had prepared for our interviews with mechanics. We practiced the interview questionnaire with each other by trading off roles as the interviewer and the interviewee. We found it helpful to repeatedly practice as it enables us to become more comfortable and familiar with the questions themselves, to identify the best way to ask the questions, and to prepare ourselves for potential questions the research participants could ask us. Through this practice, we were able to re-word and re-order the questions that would allow the entire questionnaire to flow in a conversational manner.

At the suggestion of our faculty mentor and Duke’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), we have recently been developing a feasibility study, which will help us gauge the viability of our research and understand the interests and needs of the auto mechanic community. This study is our team’s introduction into the local auto worker community, and so it is an important step toward building rapport and establishing relationships.

Additionally, our team along with other SRT teams have been attending qualitative research workshops, which have helped us develop and strengthen skills on data collection methods such as in-depth interviewing and focus group discussions. Much of the content has been directly applicable to our own project. These workshops have also given us the opportunity to challenge our perspectives and hear from students from diverse backgrounds.

With the help of our community liaison, we have now started to make contacts with local auto repair shops. Additionally, two of our team members based in California have been attempting to talk to auto shops there.

Although we have not been able to gather the amount of data we originally intended, it has been gratifying to reflect upon the information we have collected. The auto mechanics we have spoken to about our research have expressed enthusiasm about learning more about their health and how they can improve their safety practices to better protect themselves.

Ultimately, we feel that we are one step further toward our broader research aims. While the project has not followed our originally envisioned timeline and expectations, we remain optimistic for the future and are ultimately grateful for the extensive insight we continue to gain into the global health research field.