Statements in Debates
The document I’m tabling today isn’t a Government of the Northwest Territories document. It is actually a document of the Seniors’ Society, but we have participated with them, and we will certainly continue to work with them to support any initiatives to limit or reduce the amount of abuse of seniors. The individual actions are the actions identified within that report, which is not a government document. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, during my Minister’s statement today, I did provide a couple of numbers that individuals could call. But if an individual sees or witnesses abuse, I think one of the important things that a person can do is start developing a relationship with that elder and learning about the elder, to help him identify the abuse that might be taking place. They can go to the elder’s home and invite them to engage with other local seniors who may be participants in the society that is visiting us here today. I would encourage communication using the 1-800 numbers, getting in touch with other...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m not sure there’s enough time on the clock. The Our Elders: Our Communities framework outlines seven priorities that will be used to guide the future program design for older adults to assist them to remain in their communities, as long as possible. That’s the ultimate goal of aging in place. The seven priorities include:
Healthy and active aging;
Home and community care services;
Integrated and coordinated services across the continuum;
Caregiver supports;
Elder responsive communities;
Accessible and current information, making sure it’s available; as well as
Sustainable...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to recognize June 15th as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Colleagues and visitors in the gallery are wearing purple to promote awareness of this important day, and I’d like to recognize the significant amount of purple in the building today. Mr. Speaker, our work towards eliminating elder abuse is done in partnership with the NWT Seniors’ Society and the NWT Network to Prevent Abuse of Older Adults. I would encourage all Members to read the Creating Safe Communities for Older Adults: a Five Year Strategy for the Northwest Territories...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following two documents entitled “Creating Safe Communities for Older Adults: A Five Year Strategy for the Northwest Territories 2015-2020” and the “NWT On The Land Collaborative Fund Pilot Report.” Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we’re not planning a formal response to the document, but we do have a solid working relationship with the Seniors’ Society. We’ll continue working with the Seniors’ Society. Where appropriate and where it falls within our mandate, we’re absolutely willing to move forward on different initiatives identified within the framework that we’re tabling today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m pleased to be tabling the fiveyear strategy that was developed by the NWT Seniors’ Society and the NWT Network to Prevent Abuse of Older Adults later today. The department has been collaborating with the NWT Seniors’ Society and the network to support training for further frontline providers and screening assessment and support of older adults who undergo abuse. We have made a commitment and now make a commitment again here today that we will continue to work with the Seniors’ Society and participate with the network in prevention of abuse of older adults on the...
Mr. Speaker, the department has been collaborating with the NWT Seniors’ Society and the Network for the Prevention of Abuse of Older Adults. A key action in the strategy is related to training for frontline providers and screening, assessment and support of older adults who actually are undergoing abuse. Older adult abuse screening tools are designed to gather information about older adults and their circumstances in order to evaluate the possibility of abuse occurrence. Screening tools offer a framework for deciding what strategies may be the most appropriate, if problems are identified...
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, with the recent ruling of the Supreme Court on Metis health benefits, we’re hoping that that is in fact the case, but we actually have no details on how they plan to move forward to address that particular court ruling. We will be following up with the federal government to see what, if any, dollars will flow our way.
The Member is correct, we spend about $2 million plus dollars a year providing Metis health benefits. We’re hoping that those are the type of dollars we see from the federal government. At this time, we have no indication from them what they intend...
I can’t say when those negotiations will begin, but they certainly will not begin until we have concluded all the other collective bargaining negotiations that are underway, because as I said, it’s often the same people. As far as the pension costing, we are continuing to do that work. It isn’t simple. Superann has a lot of questions. They have a lot of concerns. We need to ensure that whatever happens is fair and reasonable. We don’t know what the cost on the individual basis might be. We certainly don’t want our employees, the employees of Hay River to be in a worse position. We want to make...