Debates of March 2, 2006 (day 40)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, for the past few days I’ve been speaking on the travel with medical travel and I’ve paid particular interest to the case of a lady from Inuvik who had experienced some difficulty while being transported in a taxi. My intent, Mr. Speaker, is not to blame anybody. It’s to see if we can find the problem and find solutions. That’s why I’ve been questioning Mr. Miltenberger. Providing on-the-ground transportation should be an essential service. It should not be a business and a lot of people give him business then they will tend to cut a few corners so they can make a buck and you can’t blame them. So I would like to ask the Minister if the department does regular reviews on the provision of ground transportation services. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Miltenberger.

Return To Question 505-15(4): Medical Ground Transportation Services

Mr. Speaker, there’s three components to the issue of transportation. There’s the issue that comes up with highway rescue, there’s the issue of ambulance services and then there’s the issue of ground transportation within communities for non-emergency or routine access. In some cases, like in Inuvik, there is a contract with the health centre with a private businessman. In Yellowknife, Stanton has a contract for the ground transportation with a local taxi outfit and it’s a routine pick-up and delivery for non-emergent care and that’s within the purview and mandate of the authorities, or, in this case, Stanton. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary To Question 505-15(4): Medical Ground Transportation Services

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thanks to the Minister for that. When I speak of on-the-ground transportation I’m usually referring to all of them because they all, as far as I’m concerned, are linked. So there’s 147 new positions going into the government and there’s 98 of them in Yellowknife alone. Would we not be able to allocate two of those 98 positions whose only function will be to pick up medical patients? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 505-15(4): Medical Ground Transportation Services

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What we are doing is we’re doing a comprehensive review, as I have indicated in this House, on the whole issue of ambulance services, and that document is going to Cabinet here in the next few weeks then at which point we’ll be looking for feedback from the Members. We’re interested in trying to look at rationalizing and improving the service and better coordinating it to deal with issues like liabilities, standards, training, so that as northerners we have a common sense and understanding of what can be expected in communities in this particular area. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary To Question 505-15(4): Medical Ground Transportation Services

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I stated when I opened my questioning, that I wasn’t looking for anyone to blame, I was just looking for some answers so we can come up with some type of solution. In speaking to the family members of the lady that had the trouble, you know, they’re also looking for answers. So I’d like to ask the Minister, has he asked for an inquiry or an internal investigation into the incident to be sure that further incidents like this don’t happen again? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 505-15(4): Medical Ground Transportation Services

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ve had discussions with the deputy about the need to backtrack on a step-by-step basis on this whole incident so that we can have that assurance, we can review what transpired, when, the times, and ensure that if there’s things did not work accordingly, then we make the necessary adjustments. So, yes, I’ve had discussions with the deputy and asked that that work be done. Thank you.