[European Center for Humanitarian Health (CESH). Providing operational know-how directly applicable in crisis...

Founded in 1997 at the initiative of Charles Mérieux, the European Center for Humanitarian Health Care (French acronym, CESH) is a Public Interest Organization comprising 7 members, i.e., Lyon 1 Claude Bernard University, Aix-Marseille II University of the Mediterranean, the Public Hospital System of Lyon, the Public Hospital System of Marseille, the French Army Health Corps, the Mérieux Foundation, and the National School of Veterinary Medicine in Lyon. The CESH is a multifunctional resource dedicated to providing education, information, and research in the field of humanitarian action. The objectives of the CESH's Educational Program are to increase awareness of the complexity of humanitarian action and teach the principles and methods necessary to integrate experienced teams already in the field. Courses including a three-week study program sanctioned by an Interuniversity Degree in Public Health and several 2-to-3-day training modules are open to all humanitarian actors including field workers and decision-makers, health-care professionals, and governmental or other administrative agents. Thanks to a diverse faculty with academic, humanitarian, training, civilian and military backgrounds and to a wide-ranging curriculum, the CESH helps to promote communication and to open up closed pathways of cooperation between the different groups involved in humanitarian action. The module entitled "Humanitarian Assistance and Civilian and Military Cooperation" exemplifies the effort of the CESH to generate collaborative behavior among civilian and military actors. The CESH's Research Program is aimed at providing practical tools for decision-making in the field. The web site of the CESH [http://cesh.univ-lyon1.fr] presents the mission and activities of the Center as well as information on course enrolment and humanitarian action.