Captains Jonathan Sylvie and Ross Davidson of the Materiel Command presented architectural plans to the Royal Nepalese Army Medical Command. This effort assists Nepal in establishing a military medical institute. LTC Patricia Hastings led the team in July. Consultation on curriculum will continue with Tripler AMC, University of Hawaii and Hawaii Pacific University. The institute will be dedicated to the memory of King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev.

 

HELP Course / Hawaii
HELP Me, HELP You

The ICRC's Health Emergencies in Large Populations/Health, Law, Ethics and Policy course concluded in early August, marking its sixth year in Honolulu. Thirty-one military and civilian personnel from 15 countries absorbed the knowledge of expert presenters from around the world and each other, and were assisted by Center staff members Michelle Pjanic and Winnie Yamaguchi, with tech support from Rod Macalintal and Karol Chordas.

 

Peacekeeping Training / Thailand
A Continuing Initiative

The Royal Thai Armed Forces conducted a regional staff development seminar, at which the participants received focused training on modern peacekeeping operations. In this initiative co-sponsored by U.S. Pacific Command and the Thai Supreme Command, Peter Leentjes and Carl Cobb from the Center staff were two of several trainers that participated in the two-week event in July and August.

 

PEHI Assessment / Federated States of Micronesia
For a Healthier Pacific

Gary Rhyne, CDC program manager and Center staff member, visited the Federated States of Micronesia, one of a team to conduct an assessment for the Pacific Emergency Health Initiative (PEHI). PEHI is co-sponsored by the Center of Excellence and the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Also scheduled are assessments for Guam, Yap and the Northern Marianas Islands.

 

PREP Course / Philippines
Preparing in the Philippines

In July, the Philippines National Defense College was the site of the first Primary Responder Enhancement Program short course, sponsored by the Center of Excellence and developed and taught by Dr. Thomas Ditzler representing the Center and Dr. Michael Kellar of TAMC. The course instructs on personal security, issues in interoperability and strategies for enhancing responder readiness.

 

EIPC Training / Mongolia
Building Capacity in the Steppes of Asia

An Enhanced International Peacekeeping Capacities Phase III event took place in Mongolia in August, with Jeff Lewis and Ulf Jershed from the Center providing their expertise on humanitarian issues and peace operations, respectively. Phase III events put classroom knowledge learned in Phase II to the test in field exercises.

 

Exchange Program / Vietnam
Medical Colleagues Meet

Major General Nancy Adams, Commander Pacific Regional Medical Command, led a delegation of medical personnel from TAMC and US Army Pacific to Hanoi, Vietnam. This was a first-ever medical information exchange with the Vietnamese Medical Command (VMC). The invitation was extended to General Adams after a visit of VMC senior leaders to TAMC. LTC Ronald Sutherland led discussions covering disaster, trauma, preventive medicine and surgical techniques. LTC Patricia Hastings, Deputy Director, was a team member.

 

Special Training / Arctic
A Hot Topic for Cold Climates

In the early years, Center of Excellence activities focused predominantly on information management and public health activities. US military medical personnel were the primary audience. Since 1998, the staff has increased by 300%. As staff size increased, the skill base broadened as well. This shift was manifested in a new focus on international peacekeeping, requiring the input of many more disciplines for a well-rounded perspective. Now, once again, the Center is venturing into fresh territory.

Under the guidance of its new director, the Center has begun to build up its civilian humanitarian portfolio. While the Center will continue to support peacekeeping, public health and information management activities, a new focus and allocation of resources will bring the humanitarian-side of the house up to the level of the other core activities. This broad disciplinary and topical base is one characteristic that makes the Center a valuable resource to both civilian and military practitioners working in all areas of disaster management and humanitarian assistance. An example of this broadening perspective is the Center-organized Severe Cold Climate Conference anticipated for late autumn in 2002.

Following 100-year floods in Siberia this spring, it was obvious that flood disaster assistance in a sub-zero climate is different in many ways from floods in a tropical climate such as in Bangladesh. For this reason, the Center is devising an agenda to facilitate the development of procedures, guidelines, and 'best practices' for disaster response in a severe cold climate setting. In addition, attendees will be asked to identify assets and skills that various responding institutions possess or are nurturing for more effective disaster response in a severe cold climate setting. Encouraging networking among contacts and facilitating communication among potential responders in a severe cold disaster climate, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, is another desired outcome of the conference planners.

A critical co-sponsor, consultant, and facilitator is the Northern Forum, a non-profit, international organization composed of sub-national or regional governments from ten northern countries – Canada, China, Finland, Japan, Mongolia, Norway, Republic of Korea, Russia Federation, Sweden, and the U.S. In addition to the Northern Forum, the Center is in contact with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent, and the InterAction Disaster Response Unit.

Co-sponsorship could extend to any of these additional groups if they choose.

"This is the first event of this type; therefore, we are humble in our objectives while attempting to develop a valuable and unique product," said Jeff Lewis, lead staff member for the Center's Humanitarian Practice and Affairs Unit and the primary point of contact for the conference.

Lewis went on to explain that the various methods and challenges in delivering effective disaster response in severe cold weather conditions, including forecasting, assessment and response priorities, need to be collated and distributed. Coordination issues and procedures for requesting assistance from outside the disaster area, including national response authorities, the U.S government and other Northern Forum members must also be documented and understood by the participants.

The humanitarian assistance and disaster response emphasis provides a forum where the role of military components can be explored as 'support only' or, in some cases, more actively involved in the execution and management of disaster responses in cold climate settings. "Using the Siberian floods as a case study, the conference will develop potential coordination mechanisms that might be established at the onset of a disaster to provide emergency assistance to affected populations," added Lewis.

Attendance for the conference is anticipated from other organizations and institutions that may be responding to cold environment disasters in the Asia Pacific region. Some participants will present civil-military co-operation models that could be applied or revised for disaster responses in the future. Selected participants will be expected to make presentations on their actual experience in responding to disasters in a severe cold climate situation. Combining actual case studies with facilitated discussions on lessons learned, a first draft of a proposed checklist or guideline of 'best practices' will be developed.

If you have something to contribute to the development of this conference, contact Jeff.Lewis@coe-dmha.org.