Okay. Next department is Finance, capital investment expenditures, office of the comptroller general, $28,000; office of the chief information officer, $553,000. Total department, $581,000. Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Madam Chair. My questions have to do with the electronic records and document management system. According to the revised budget that we originally passed back in March of last year, the budget for that whole amount of document management was about $341,000 if my math is correct, which means we only spent about $19,000 out of that amount, which is a paltry amount of money. Now we’ve carried this over again.
Can we get an explanation why very little of that money was actually spent and why we’re seeing it as a carry-over? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Mr. Aumond.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The department had a resource shortage. We had some vacancies that we’ve since been able to staff and that was the reason why we weren’t able to undertake the project. The vacancy was unanticipated, but as I mentioned, it has been staffed now and our intention is to complete that work this fiscal year. Thank you.
Thank you. No, that’s a reasonable explanation.
My next question has to do with the security infrastructure tools and improvements at $231,000. Again, that was the complete budget that was approved by this Assembly where we have not spent $1 and we’re now seeing it as a carry-over.
Can we get an explanation of why? Again, between those two categories we got for the information, the last one, but we’ve got half a million dollars here that was barely touched. Thank you.
I guess the response is similar, that our security manager’s position was vacant. It is now staffed and the intention is to complete the project in the next few months. Thank you.
I guess the question I have is with this delay in spending, have there been any other setbacks that we can anticipate as we prepare for, I guess, the budget plan coming up this fall? Did this delay of spending, I guess, cascade from a number of other events that maybe we’ll foresee here in the future?
No.
Thank you, Mr. Aumond. Finance, capital investment expenditures, total department, $581,000.
Agreed.
Public Works and Services, capital investment expenditures, asset management, $3.722 million; Technology Service Centre, $230,000; petroleum products, $655,000. Total department, $4.607 million.
Agreed.
Moving right along. Department of Health and Social Services, capital investment expenditures, health and social services programs, not previously authorized, $22.631 million; community programs, $5.480 million. Total department, not previously authorized, $28.111 million. Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Madam Chair. My questions have to do with the electronic medical records where we’re carrying over a little over $3 million here. Again, if my math is correct from what we approved in the last budget, which I think was over $5 million, we only spent about 34 percent of that budget. My question has to do with the fact that we know that this is Infoway information money, this is federal money that’s earmarked specifically for this type of initiative, and because this electronic medical record has spanned over a number of years, my concern has always been the security of funding for that long a period of time.
Are we in jeopardy of being in default of receiving this federal money as a result of not being compliant with any type of schedules of completion dates?
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Minister Abernethy.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I hear the Member clearly and I share the same concerns. I don’t believe we’re in jeopardy of losing those dollars at this point. The primary delay in the EMR project has been due to extensive contract negotiations with the vendor. These negotiations included the creation of a new pricing model to reflect a health care delivery model in the Northwest Territories which is different than most other jurisdictions, and we had to work on defining the requirements for NWT-specific functionality in our environment where we have the certain technology that we do. Due to these significant delays as a result of these contract negotiations, the majority of the software enhancements and site implementations planned for ’13-14 have been pushed back to ’14-15. The project overall is anticipated to be in the closing phase during the ’16-17 fiscal year.
The request to carry over this particular $3.421 million includes a significant portion of funding for costs which are reimbursable by Canada Health Infoway. Under our current agreements with Infoway, the earliest funding will expire on December 31, 2015. Basically what that means is that those portions of the project that are reimbursable by Infoway would be completed first and then we can move forward with the other portions. The project rollout schedule has been planned to target the reimbursable activity up front and move forward with the closing in ’16-17 after we have utilized the Canada Health Infoway dollars.
We don’t anticipate losing those dollars at this point. We feel we have time, regardless of these delays as a result of these contract negotiations. We will get the money.
Again, I appreciate the Minister’s thorough response there. From what I gather, December 31, 2015, is going to be a critical time period for us, and I understand that, but I think for the betterment of trying to understand this project, because it has carried on almost the life of the 17th Assembly, where are we at in terms of spending today of the whole project, and what does that money represent in terms as a percent complete for that project, just so I can understand where we’re at with the project itself, both in dollars and as also percent complete.
I don’t have the full data with respect to the full project. I’ve got the data with respect to the carry-over. I would be happy to get the Member and committee that additional information and provide it to them as soon as we can pull it together for them.
I’ll accept the update from the Minister. I appreciate it. No further questions.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Next I have Mr. Bouchard.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a couple questions about the budget. Obviously, the Hay River Health Centre amount, indications are that the project is on course, on budget. I’m just wondering why there would be a carry-over there. I know we shut down for the winter, but that was planned, I thought.
Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Mr. Aumond.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The Member is correct; it was a planned shutdown, but that planning, I think, came up earlier in the last fiscal year after the budget was passed. So when the original appropriation for the previous fiscal year was approved by the Assembly, it was anticipated that they would work throughout the whole year. Subsequent to that, the contractor made the determination that they could shut down for the winter and still keep to the schedule and not incur any additional cost by doing so. That’s the reason why it’s a carry-over.
Thank you, Mr. Aumond. Mr. Bouchard.
My next question is about the Stanton Territorial Hospital plan study. I guess in coalition with the other expenditures is the Stanton Hospital. I’m just wondering what the plan is going forward. We’re looking to do major upgrades to Stanton Hospital. What is the strategy going forward on upgrades to the facility in an area where we may actually be tearing down and replacing? I know these are not huge numbers we’re spending on seclusion rooms and stuff like that, but I’m just wondering, I guess, the strategy going forward and how much money do we put into it that we’re basically maybe tearing away when we actually retrofit the full facility.
Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Mr. Kalgutkar.
Thank you, Madam Chair. This $900,000 was part of the budget that was used to pay for the feasibility study on the Stanton project and the functional design. The money that’s being carried over is going to supplement the $5 million left in the ’14-15 fiscal year to continue on with that work. As the Members know, we have started the P3 procurement process related to that project. We initiated our…(inaudible)…process earlier this month and that funding along with the $5 million is going to help fund that process.
Thank you, Mr. Kalgutkar. Mr. Bouchard.
I understand the planning side of it. I’m just wondering about the capital expenditures to Stanton now that we know that we’re going to do a major retrofit to it. At what time do we say, okay, we’re not going to retrofit anything anymore because over the next five years we’re going to tear it all down? I guess what is the strategy going forward when we’re implementing capital projects into that facility when we’re planning to do a major retrofit to it?
Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Minister Abernethy.
With respect to Stanton, there has been a significantly complex process where we’ve involved many professionals including health practitioners who are currently using the building so that we can have a really solid plan of care as part of our planning study and so that the building would meet our future and current needs. We’ve built hospitals and health centres before and we recognize that there are challenges in doing that.
By way of example, we did a major upgrade to the health centre in Fort Smith, and it was like this project given that we continued to provide services in that building while we were constructing it. We learned a lot of lessons for not having a really comprehensive plan as far as how do you build and live in the same building at the same time, so we spent a lot of time in the design of this project trying to put in those mechanisms and plans so that we can build and move from certain sections of the building without affecting program delivery. The bottom line that exists there today has a great skeleton but not much else, so we are going to add on to the building and then we’re going to upgrade what is there now, which means a significant amount of work, but we do have a plan that will allow us to transition and to continue to provide services in that building while we’re doing it. It’s quite complex; it’s huge. A lot of time and effort has been put into it, so we will be able to provide services during construction.
My only concern is in this supp we have over $400,000 that we’re going to be putting into Stanton Hospital, which I’m assuming most of that work will probably be torn down eventually in the next 10 years depending on where we retrofit and what we retrofit. I’m just concerned that we’re spending money that we’re just going to tear down eventually here. If we can come up with a strategy and maybe something to go forward as far as we’re not going to invest money that we’re going to just tear down I guess is my concern.
The build is not going to start until the summer of 2016, assuming the procurement process goes well. We have a requirement to continue to provide services to all the residents of the Northwest Territories and this is a territorial facility. We are taking steps to ensure that where we can utilize equipment, construct or utilize during the capital process, we can continue to use it as we move forward in the new design. We don’t want to throw anything in the garbage. We want to maximize our investments as best possible, but we are going to gut the majority of the existing building, once construction starts, over a seven-year period.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Health and Social Services, capital investment expenditures, total department, not previously authorized, $28.111 million. Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to follow up on Mr. Bouchard’s questioning I believe it’s around the existing facility in Hay River. I would like to ask about that facility. Are there any plans once the old hospital in Hay River is not being used and there’s going to be a new hospital there in operation? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Minister Abernethy.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The Member is asking a question that I think a significant number of other individuals have been asking. The building will be assessed and go through the disposal process as usual, which may include, if appropriate and if the building has any life left into it, repurposing or tear down, depending on the nature and state of that building.
Mr. Chair, I want to throw in my comments to the facility in Hay River. It’s a good facility and certainly I would support that. Madam Groenewegen talked about this in a previous session here, about having that facility maybe be considered with some work with the federal government and our government as a centre for excellence because we have a high population of people needing diabetes awareness and programming and stuff like that, that facility can be used for diabetes services for the people of the Northwest Territories.
According to the Health department documents, there are at least 200 people every year who will be diagnosed with diabetes. This is two years and we will have 400 and so forth. There is a real crisis that’s creeping up on some health care costs. I think it is something that the government maybe could consider working with other governments as to having that centre, because right now people are wondering where to go. Families are wondering where to go. There is a program in Edmonton out of the Royal Alexandra Hospital that has a program, because I attended the program with my wife for one week. It’s an excellent program to work with people and families. I think this hospital is in good standing. Again, they are doing the assessment. We can pitch in for having a centre like that in the Northwest Territories for a diabetes prevention program. We can do some of that work. I want to leave it at that, make comments to the Minister while he is in front of us. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Chair, I hear the Member loud and clear as I have heard the Members from Hay River as they speak about the same issue. What we do know is, based on the assessment of that building, that building does not meet the needs of a health facility. I don’t believe that we’ve done that additional assessment to see if there is any other purpose that it can be used for. As with the normal disposal process, that building would obviously have some work done to it to figure out if it can be used for any other. I can’t say. I haven’t climbed around in that building myself. I don’t know the true nature and state of the roof and mechanical, but that work will be done and we will be able to determine if there is any future use for that. As always, we are always open to discussions with committee and the communities to see if there are opportunities to repurpose.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Committee, we are on total department of $28.111 million.
Agreed.
Thank you. Page 11, Department of Justice, capital infrastructure expenditures, court services, not previously authorized, $353,000; corrections, not previously authorized, $161,000; services to public, not previously authorized, $237,000. Total department, not previously authorized, $751,000. Committee, agreed?
Agreed.
Page 12, Education, Culture and Employment, capital infrastructure expenditures, education and culture, not previously authorized, $2.61 million; labour development and standards, not previously authorized, $193,000. Total department, not previously authorized, $2.803 million. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I had a couple of questions, a couple of topics on that page. First, the Kaw Tay Whee School interior works in Detah, not a big project but I see we are carrying significant dollars over.
Will that work be completed this summer and not interfere with the school starting up in the fall? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Minister Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. That is the intent. It is intended to be completed by August 2014.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Mr. Bromley.
Thanks to the Minister. That’s good to hear.
The next item there, the biomass boiler in the Deninu School in Fort Resolution, I’m very happy to see that going to that community. I think it will help establish a bit of a biomass market there and it’s also very much in line with their forest management agreements and some of the jobs they are contemplating and activities they are contemplating. So I am supportive of that.
I am wondering what the source of the $300,000 is for that project.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Mr. Kalgutkar.
