Julie Green

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for the question. So the licensing of nurses of all kinds is handled by the Registered Nurses Association of the NWT and Nunavut. So they're the ones who process the registration application. And the application does require proof of credentials, prior work sites, hours worked, and so on and so forth. That means that often they have to apply to the licensing authority where they were previously employed for paperwork. And as the Member said in his statement, in the case of Ontario it took a couple of months to get that lined up. So I don't...

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, just to be really clear, we have contracts with five addictionsbased facility treatments in BC, Alberta, and Ontario. If people are seeking facilitybased treatment, they should connect with their community counselling program and get a referral to one of those places. That's the start of the process. And once they're referred to the place, they go on to that place's waiting list, and they are then accepted when a bed is available. And using the method I've just described, the treatment is fully paid for. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if an NWT resident is referred to one of the treatment centres that we currently have contracts with, we will pay the full amount of the treatment cost, and we expect to add an Indigenous specific offering to the treatment centre list by the beginning of April. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is really a twopart process. The first part is that the individual who wants treatment needs to be assessed by a healthcare practitioner or counsellor as understanding what's involved in treatment, ready for treatment, preferences for treatment, where they would like to go and so on. That is part one. Part two is then sending the referral to the addictions treatment centre, and then they do or don't have beds available, they put the person on the waiting list. There are a number of variables depending on the size and capacity of the treatment...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we had a good goaround yesterday on detox so I'm not going to go back there.

In terms of new federal funding, I'm very interested to see what the details are and how that money can be spent to the benefit of residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member raises a good point. We've had a couple of programs close recently that occupied the Territorial Treatment Centre in Yellowknife and the Trailcross Treatment Centre in Fort Smith. So we are aware that there is some surplus infrastructure. I think the process is to first of all identify the programming we want in the surplus infrastructure and then see whether it's appropriate for use. Some of the infrastructure that the Member has mentioned is very old and would not be up to code whereas other buildings would be ready for occupancy in short...

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm certainly willing to make that commitment to meet with the nurses association and see if there is anything that we can assist them to do to speed up the licensing. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased that we're joined today by Captain Jason Brinson of the Salvation Army in Yellowknife, where they provide invaluable services to the vulnerable population in food hampers all the way through to withdrawal management and sheltering. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I don't have an answer to that question. I'll have to take it on notice.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we are aware that the practice of pharmacy has expanded since our Pharmacy Act had a last substantial overhaul and that the pharmacists are able to deliver a greater scope of practice than they have historically and that that includes administering specific medications as well as prescribing them, which would be a huge help as things stand now. So we are planning to draft regulations to bring pharmacists into the Health and Social Services Professions Act and to do that work early in the life of the next Assembly. Thank you.