Tom Beaulieu

Thank you. As the current structure is set up, we do go through the budget process, business planning process, and within the provisions of those business plans and those budgets there are seniors programs from the various departments. So if there is a consideration that those budgets would be pooled and put under the Ministry of Seniors, then that’s something that we would have to have a discussion not only with Cabinet, but I think an open discussion with the entire Legislative Assembly. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m hoping that this was one of the areas that the Minister’s Forum on Addictions and Community Wellness would be looking at. I know that infrastructure is available and exists within existing infrastructure that is designed for wellness and treatment. I’m hoping that it’s looked at, but I don’t have an indication now that they have looked at that. Not because they haven’t, but because they just haven’t advised me that they have. Initially when we rolled out our wellness plan, I don’t believe there was money allocated to work within that wellness camp.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the case of where diabetes gets to a point where there is dialysis needed, as an example, we have a couple of options. They have dialysis in Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Smith and I believe we have dialysis in Inuvik, although I don’t know that specifically off the top of my head. In addition to that there are people who have diabetes in small communities who cannot travel to these centres, like the requirement to have the dialysis three times a week. Sometimes the other option is to train members of their family to assist them right in their hometown. We have some...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are working with the health and social services authorities right across the region. We are compiling some diabetes work which will be completed this month, or I suppose has been completed, and we’re trying to put the rest of the program together to expand out. We did the pilot projects in Norman Wells and the Yellowknife Health and Social Services, and Tlicho Community Services Agency in Behchoko, and the intention is to try to develop a diabetes program that can be applied right across the territory to all of the communities in the NWT. Thank you.

Thank you. In all fairness, we do fund the Seniors’ Society, the territorial society as well as the local seniors’ societies, but I am prepared to have the discussion at the Member’s request. Thank you.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. As Minister responsible for Seniors, I don’t have a specific budget under that ministry. However, I have access to budgets within the other departments. So far I’ve been meeting with the NWT Seniors’ Society, the group have fairly regular contact with the Seniors’ Society, and their requests come through me, and then I take those requests and go back to the various departments depending on which department they’re making a request of. So we are engaging the Seniors’ Society definitely. Thank you.

I am prepared to have the department and the Beaufort-Delta Health and Social Services Authority engage the Gwich’in Tribal Council to see if it’s feasible for us to do some wellness work at that camp.

As a result of the program, the plan is to release the final evaluation next month in April 2013. Then in collaboration with the chronic disease management people, we’re hoping that once we release the report that we will start to develop a framework through the Healthy Choices Framework and Health Promotion to start to deliver the program soon after that. I would anticipate that sometime this summer or this fall we will roll out the programs as a result of those pilots that we had run.

Mr. Speaker, the Member is correct; we are spending $2.2 million in Nats’ejee K’eh and we are operating at a bit below 50 percent occupancy. We want to look at Nats’ejee K’eh as part of a spectrum of treatment opportunities or treatment options that will be provided to the people of the NWT.

Having said that, what we are doing with the one treatment centre that we do have in place is we are again removing Nats’ejee K’eh from Deh Cho Health and Social Services. We are going to have some discussions with the reserve, of course, where Nats’ejee K’eh sits. That will be directly run through the...

Mr. Speaker, yes, it is in our plans to try to address the issues that are stemming from addictions in all of the communities right across the territory. That is built into our Mental Health and Addictions Action Plan. It’s part of the mandate of the Minister’s Forum on Addictions and Community Wellness. As they travel around, they are to get enough information and ideas from the communities to be able to develop a solution. By May 1st we are hoping that we can have the report completed. We’re looking to address this probably region by region and even community by community. Thank you.