Sandy Lee

As I stated in the opening statement, there were 72 recommendations to CFSA. We are making this report available a month sooner than required because we do appreciate that Members want to take a look at that. As I stated, we are supportive of the majority of the recommendations. We are moving immediately on 22 and there are others that we support but need legislation change and working with other departments. We do provide a detailed response to those recommendations. I do believe we have ample time to review those. The issue that the Member raised, yes, we are working with other departments...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s a program that we support and we agree with the Members that it does benefit and we would like to see them expanded as the financial resources permit. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, I would.

Mr. Chairman, we must work together with our residents, communities, governments and agencies to meet the health and social services challenges that we face, to help ensure a sustainable health care system for the future.

Today I am presenting the Department of Health and Social Services’ main estimates for fiscal year 2011-2012.

Across Canada and internationally, leaders are being faced with difficult choices around the sustainability and accessibility of health care. It is no different for us in the Northwest Territories. We know that we need to make...

The advisory group is not formed yet and so I will get back to the Member on that.

I just want to caution that we will, if that’s what the Member is wanting to know, definitely consult with the Council for Persons with Disabilities and YACL and other groups that are involved in this work. We need to make sure that eventually, at the end of the day, those are the groups who will be vying to provide the program and we don’t want to interfere with their ability to be able to deliver the programs. I need to make it clear that we will definitely consult with them to advise us. We will work with them...

There are employees of the department on the committee as well as NGO groups and regional organizations. Thank you.

Those two residents have been assessed by the Territorial Admissions Committee and I believe they have placements in Inuvik. We have to work out the timing and arrangements to place those elders there because they cannot be taken care of at the current setting. In a larger perspective, we are looking to develop a program in Aklavik where we can change the program so that we can look after up to 40 to 50 seniors who we believe are going to be in need of support from the government. So we look to expand the program and as I committed with the Member and to the public when we were there last...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The staff of the authority have been working with the families for the last number of months and they will continue to work with the families. That letter, I understand, went out because that’s what the staff thought the family wanted, agreed to, but, obviously, the Member has spoken to me about it and that’s not the understanding the family had. I will commit to the Member and I have already instructed the staff to work with the families and we will have more time to work with the families and work out the schedule that works better for the families. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the public administrator is following up on that. I will get back to the Member with the information. Thank you.

There are a number of things going on with respect to changes to the programming at Joe Greenland Centre. It is actually a really good news item in many ways. The Housing Corporation has committed to do a renovation to a wing of the facility that is badly required. We’re going to increase the number of independent beds from seven to 15, and there are people and elders in Aklavik waiting for those spaces. We are going to redesign our program so that instead of serving three elders, on average, that Joe Greenland Centre on that wing was able to do since 2007, we expect to serve up to 40 to 50...

Mr. Speaker, this is a service being provided by the federal government under NIHB. We assist in the process in terms of providing space and helping them with the administrative procedure. I agree that this is an important service. I will get a complete update on when the service will start, how many people are on the waiting list and what options they are looking at to speed up the process, including what the Member has suggested. Thank you.