Glen Abernethy

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The setting of service standards is part of the work that the department is doing with the authority, given that we've moved to a single authority. This is real opportunity for us to set those standards. That's part of the important work we're doing to try to help us control costs.

Stanton is continuing to do some work around scheduling and trying to improve their scheduling so that they're minimizing double shifts, triple shifts, those types of things, and hoping to control some of their costs that way, as well. There are all sorts of things happening. One of the big ones...

So, we had to keep HH Williams open, Mr. Chair, during the transition, which, yes, it always existed, but that building was supposed to be abandoned a while ago, but we did not plan for long-term care in the community and we had to come to the table and fix that problem. We fixed that problem, so we had to keep people in HH Williams for a short period of time, recognizing that we did not want to discontinue the services during the construction of Woodland Manor. So this is to help us transition for that short period of time, where we had to keep the old hospital open, to the point where we...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I hear the Member. I agree with the Member. It's not just these individuals who are providing services, but there are lots of other groups out there that we will be partnering with. The disabilities council has different programs, there are other partners we will be working with, so there are multiple teams involved in this. This coordinator is helping people make sure that they are getting the services. I hear the Member, and, as part of the Early Childhood Development plan, moving forward, there is an enhancement in this area in subsequent years, so we will...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, as a Canadian citizen, you are entitled to health services for all acute and primary care services. The difference is obviously drugs or dental. We do not have pharmacare or universal dental coverage in Canada, so that is what NIHB provides now, and we match it for extended health benefits. If you are not a resident of the Northwest Territories, you are not carrying a healthcare card, and you have not registered as a Metis, you would not obviously get that, but you could register and make sure that you filled out the appropriate paperwork. If you fill out the...

The question is a little confusing insofar as, if the system is the guardian, the system is the guardian. If it is parents, if the parents or the legal guardians are the guardians, they would sign consent. If the system is the legal guardian, the director would be the individual who would be responsible for signing. There are times that the director can sign consent, but it really depends on the nature of the discussions or information that are being had.

For instance, there are lots of times the consent can be shared or signed or provided by the director to share information around things like...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the cost drivers are occurring in the authority, but the department is working with them to identify those cost drivers and trying to put some scope on the things that are driving costs to help us better understand the deficit so that we can get efficiencies and make improvements to get maximum bang for our dollar. It's kind of a cooperation. It's working together. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. An increase of four positions for maintaining HH Williams, that is a chronic long-term care aide, housekeeping aide, dietary aide, and cook one; and an increase of two positions for Woodland Manor, a dietary aide and a housekeeping aide. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, there are currently some services being provided out of Yellowknife, but we recognize that we need to do more at a territorial level. There will be the new child development team coordinator position that will be located in Inuvik, that can help us with the northern part of the territory. It's all currently being delivered out of Yellowknife at this point. There is also the new FASD family liaison, who is going to be located in Yellowknife, and the ASD program coordinator, who is also going to be in Yellowknife, but these will be providing services at a...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Never say never, right? By design, the answer is no. Our supplemental health programs mirror NIHB. We share the NIHB formularies with our provider, which is Blue Cross, so that they can ensure that they are providing services that are consistent. From time to time, is it possible that something sneaks through? I cannot say that it does not, but we are not aware of any at this particular point. So what I am asking is, if Members are aware of a case where something is provided by our supplementary health program as opposed to an another third-party insurance, please let us...

For specifics on what the children's lawyer does in the Northwest Territories, I would suggest that you're best off asking the Minister of Justice, who is responsible for that position. It's not a Health and Social Services position. I do know from time to time, when there are Child and Family Services issues before the courts, the children's lawyer can be accessed to provide some support to the youth to help them make sure that their voice is heard in the court of proceedings.

When it comes to the question that the Member asked previously about the ability of a child to sign a third-party...