Glen Abernethy

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...

Mr. Chair, my understanding is that we are still trying to identify the site that has a building on it, and the $100,000 would more or less go for improvements to the site that is identified, once it is identified. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following three documents entitled "The NWT Health and Social Services Patient Experience Report 2016," "Status Report on the Implementation of the Health Information Act, October 2015 to October 2016," and the "NWT On the Land Collaborative 2017 Report." Thank you Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, through the Department of Human Resources, there is some cultural competency training, or cultural awareness training, that is provided. We do encourage any practitioner coming into the Northwest Territories to go through that information. However, with some of the locums, many of the locums are coming in for a very short period of time and they are hitting the ground running. I can't guarantee that every individual goes through that training. I would like to say that, ultimately, what we would like to have happen in Sahtu, as we would in all other regions, is permanent physicians...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to welcome my constituent, Merril Dean who, as the Minister said, was inducted into the Education Hall of Fame today. Welcome and congratulations and, more importantly, thank you so much for all your contributions to the youth of the Northwest Territories. You and your efforts are truly appreciated. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to take this opportunity in celebration of Seniors' Month.

I would like to welcome some people to the Chamber: first up, Barb Hood with the NWT Seniors' Society, Joseph John Soderberg from the Yellowknife Seniors' Society, Merlyn...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the project is still pending the identification of the site, and confirmation of sustainability. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Speaker, every time I have an opportunity to meet with leadership - Aboriginal leadership - throughout the Northwest Territories, I talk about the need to work together closely to find ways to train local people for local work, including RNs and physicians. In Sahtu, as an example, I think we've been pretty lucky. There are a number of local people who have become RNs over the years, and there are even a number of individuals - at least one that I'm aware of - that has become a physician. This is a small step.

We need to work together with our leadership to encourage our youth to pursue...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is a fairly specific question. I can't tell you how many individual physicians we bring into the Sahtu on a rotational basis. I can endeavour to provide a sample rotational schedule to the Member, but we endeavour at all times to have at least one locum in the Sahtu to provide services to the residents of that region. In order to have that one locum in there, it is many, many individuals, and I can't provide that number to the Member today. I will have to get that from the department and share it at a later date.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge that June is Seniors Citizens' Month, June 1st is Intergenerational Day, and June 15th is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. I would like to invite all Northerners to join me in recognizing seniors across the territory and their valuable contribution within our families and communities during this month. Seniors are currently the fastest growing population in the Northwest Territories. It is projected that the number of seniors over the age of 70 will nearly triple between 2015 and 2034. This will increase the need for home and community care and long...