Glen Abernethy

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, prior to the move to a single authority, the Beaufort Delta Regional Health and Social Services Authority had a really good relationship with the IRC and the Gwich'in. I am confident that that relationship is still strong and still working since we have moved to a single authority. I know that the regional operation of the territorial authority has worked closely with the IRC in the delivery of some training, things like applied suicide intervention training and others. At a departmental level, we have worked with different Aboriginal and Indigenous...

Mr. Speaker, the priorities of the 18th Legislative Assembly include a commitment to take action so that seniors can age in place. Our government’s mandate builds on this priority by committing the Department of Health and Social Services to complete a projection of programming needs, develop updated capital plans to address the need for long-term care beds, and to develop a regulatory framework and financing options that will allow us to meet the growing demand for long-term care in the Northwest Territories.

As Minister of Health and Social Services, I remain committed to supporting seniors...

I wish to table the following documents entitled "Follow-Up Letter for Oral Question 743-18(2): Traditional Harvesting Food Inspection," "Follow-Up Letter for Oral Question 779-18(2): Mental Health and Wellness Programs," "Follow-Up Letter for Oral Question 806-18(2): Sahtu Regional Wellness Council." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In response to one of the recommendations put forth in the NWT Midwifery Stakeholder Engagement Report the department has initiated some preliminary discussions with partners in the School of Human Services at Aurora College to begin to explore the feasibility of offering a maternity care worker and training program. This type of program, Mr. Speaker, is similar to the model that has been offered by Nunavut Arctic College that is grounded in Indigenous culture beliefs and values.

With the new territorial hospital being built, Stanton and the GNWT have a unique opportunity to collaborate with their P3 partners in developing traditional foods menus. Carillion, which is the organization that will be managing the facility management of the hospital, has been in dialogue with hospital leadership, Stanton's Indigenous Wellness Program, and the Stanton renewable project to explore what a northern and traditional food menu may look like in the hospital. The menu planning discussions have included how foods are harvested, prepared, and how they can be served to patients while...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that's a huge question. Historically, I would say that the Health and Social Services Department in the Northwest Territories has not made responding to Indigenous healing practice a priority, but since becoming the Minister of Health and Social Services I've clearly heard from Indigenous leaders and residents across the Northwest Territories that we need to find ways to support traditional healing in our health and social services system. Mr. Speaker, that's why in November 2016 I tabled a commitment to action document titled "Building a Culturally...

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker, Disability Awareness Week is approaching in the NWT. Each year we acknowledge persons with disabilities and strive to raise awareness of challenges they may face in their daily lives with accessibility and inclusion. We also recognize volunteers who work to help persons with disabilities achieve equality within their communities during the annual disabilities awareness tea. There are more than 3,000 people in the NWT who identify as having a disability. The GNWT has committed in its mandate to ensuring effective supports and programs are in place for persons with...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled "Knowledge Agenda: Northern Research for Northern Principles." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Last time we talked about this in the House, I was inundated, thankfully, with just a large number of people saying, "Have you tried this building?" "Have you looked at that property?" "Have you followed up with?" The answer in most situations is, yes, we have looked at those properties. We've talked to those landlords. We've been looking for a solution. There were a couple that were a little bit more difficult because it involved moving GNWT staff and re-profiling billing just as the Member has suggested. We are looking at some current GNWT space that we might have to take our staff out of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have been in the Assembly for a large number of years now, and this has been possibly one of the most frustrating files that I have worked on. Something that should be such a good news story has turned out to be quite a frustration. We had hoped we would have a location by now. We have had several locations that we thought we were very close on, and for a variety of reasons such as contaminations in buildings, inability to get leases, we have not been able to get a firm location. We have come up with a temporary solution that will be beginning shortly. We...