Pardon?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have a fairly positive working relationship with the NWT Seniors’ Society and we have provided funding for some meetings and some of the functions that they’re undertaking.

With respect to facilitating the exact type of meeting that the Member is talking about, I will talk to the department to find out where we are with those kinds of supports and I will get back to the Member. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I think the extended care unit is a good example. We do learn from past mistakes and there is, on the next page, a request for money to build the extended care unit here in Yellowknife that would ensure we don’t run into the same problem we ran into in Hay River.

Coming back to the management of the new building, the management of the old building will be taken over by BHP. They are responsible for leasehold improvements and tenant management. We don’t have a cost related to any construction in that building. We do have an opportunity, depending on the tenants who are brought in, to have some...

I agree completely. That’s what we are trying to accomplish through medical travel modernization. We want to have clear rules. We want to make sure people understand their obligations under the rule and understand the Medical Travel Policy, that they understand their roles, both as a professional and as a recipient and that it has the human component built in. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I agree with the Member; we need to make sure we are getting in front of this and we are working very closely with Avens to find some solutions. We are exploring a number of different financing options that are available. They have expressed an interest in a partnership opportunity in the extended care which would help leverage moving forward with the 60 beds they want to provide here in Yellowknife. I know they’re working with the Housing Corp to talk about the renovations of the existing facility once they have a facility to move people in.

This isn’t just a Yellowknife problem, I’m sure the...

That is correct. There are positions in the facility today that are contract staff, whether it’s laundry services or food services, dietary. Those are going to be part of BHP’s facilities management and building management in the future, but they are not GNWT staff. Only nine GNWT positions will be impacted.

I would like to add, Mr. Chair, that this is a significantly larger facility than the one we have available to us today and we actually anticipate, in order to provide the full scope of services that are going to be in that building, requiring additional positions just like we needed...

As in all cases, we would obviously need some confirmation from the medical practitioner that the patient’s reality has changed. So the individual would have to work with the patient to get some recognition from the practitioner which could then be shared with the medical travel staff who can actually facilitate the return ticket or rebooking. How long it takes really depends on their ability to get the information to the medical staff, but we can make those things happen pretty fast. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am happy to do so. Extended care facilities are what we refer to as level 5 and provides services to residents with complex medical needs who require 24-hour nursing care and a range of supports from other health care professionals. An example of this would be a resident who is on a ventilator who requires care from a registered nurse and a respiratory therapist. These residents’ medical needs may become quickly unstable.

Long-term care facilities, which we refer to as level 3 and 4, provides services to residents with more stable medical needs that require access to...

I believe the Minister of Finance has already made that commitment and we will live up to it accordingly.

There’s no question that we have challenges here in the Northwest Territories with mental health and addictions. Addictions is rampant throughout the Northwest Territories, and in direct response to the Minister’s Forum on Mental Health and Addictions, we’re taking the actions that were directed by the people of the Northwest Territories, who said support on-the-land programming, get community counsellors in the communities and regions, make sure that we have a wide range of programs and options. Treatment facilities are but one, and in the Northwest Territories, treatment facilities have...