Julie Green

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the service provider going forward until the summer, when the new RFP will be awarded and a contractor in place, is the GNWT. So certainly Members are welcome to hold the GNWT to account for the operation, both of the temporary day shelter at the visitor centre site, and the one that's downtown. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that the day shelter services were evaluated in 2019, and we learned a lot at that point and we were able to implement some of the changes before COVID arrived and turned everything upside down. The disabilities council was able to provide some innovative services, especially in the early going, where they provided a place for people to stay 24 hours a day, and that was very well received.

The employer here is the NWT Disabilities Council on contract with the NTHSSA, and I can certainly mention to the staff that it might be a good idea to...

Yes, thank you. I mentioned the peer support program. There's also an addictions aftercare fund which communities are using to hire counsellors to provide ongoing support for people who are coming back and establishing themselves in a new and sober lifestyle.

We have an app for those who have the tools and the connectivity called Wagon, which was developed by Edgewood Institution in Nanaimo, and that's another possibility for people. Of course, we have the community counselling program for which no appointment is necessary. People can access on the same day. So we have a variety of ways of...

Yes, thank you. The process of welcoming someone home from southernbased treatment begins with a discharge plan that's created collaboratively with the person receiving treatment and with his or her supports in the NWT. So that person would be connected with community counselling for ongoing support. And there are, of course, a number of AA groups that are available in the larger centres. We have been working on aftercare support in the smaller communities by offering a peer support fund which communities can apply for specifically to assist people who are returning from treatment. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to update to talk about steps being taken to address the recruitment and retention of Health and Social Services staff in the Northwest Territories. Members will remember we created a mandate priority to increase the number of resident healthcare professionals by at least 20 percent during this 19th Assembly.

The COVID19 pandemic has further highlighted the need for Health and Social Services workers across Canada and within the Northwest Territories.

Staff in the Department of Health and Social Services and the health and social services authorities...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the difficulty here is that the FASD the adult FASD clinic was launched in 2020 which was not a year in which there was a lot of travelling around. That said, last year the program was able to visit Behchoko and Fort Providence, and I think that generally they committed to travelling to four different locations a year.

So based on what's happened to date, 25 people have been to the adult FASD diagnostic clinic, and 133 children and youth went to the FASD diagnostic and support program. So we would want to see those numbers as good or better in the year to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Member's question. FASD is a common concern in the NWT, unfortunately.

We have the statistics that she quoted about people who have been to the diagnostic clinics. But for the population as a whole, we don't have data that tells us what the incidence of FASD is per thousand population. It's been estimated by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health that it's eight per one thousand population. But it is more prevalent in some populations than others. So we don't really have a firm grip of the number of people who have FASD at any age. Much...

Yes, thank you. Yes, indeed, we have considered that and, in December, we issued an expression of interest to Indigenous governments seeking communities who would be interested in operating a transitional housing program, which would be safe and sober housing closer to home for people who are returning from treatment. We got an uptake of four organizations who submitted an expression of interest, and the department is now working with them on the development of their applications. The budget for this fiscal year was $750,000, and for next year is just over $1 million. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, according to a government news release from November of 2020, the NWT spends $2,329 per person on substance abuse treatment and aftercare versus the Canadian average of about half that amount.

I want to say that the total budget for facilitybased treatment, aftercare, and related supports is $20 million a year, and that accommodates in the facilitybased treatment a high of 270 people in the 20182019 year and a low of 73 people in this fiscal year, obviously lower because of COVID.

And I also just want to note in closing, there is no limit on the amount...

Yes, thank you. I was under the impression that that was in fact being done now by people who work at the FASD clinic, who provide services to people who have a confirmed diagnosis, that there was some pathway navigation going on in that situation. But I can certainly confirm that and provide the Member with that detail. Thank you.