Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I brought up who is not affected by cancer in our great territory. For the people who I represent in Nunakput, to have to travel out for one-day appointments to Inuvik is probably four days because of the timing of flights, and stuff like that. For the safety of my constituents, what I want to bring up, Mr. Speaker, is: is the Minister working with the department to identify cancer for Northerners, and how could we speed the process up to help them travel to get to their appointments? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Nunakput. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is correct. Cancer in the Northwest Territories is quite high, as with other parts of Canada, and the number of people with chronic disease continues to grow and the age of diagnosis is younger. The department continues to help reduce the impact of chronic disease such as cancer by prevention, early detection through screening, and effective medical and self-management.
In the Northwest Territories, we have guidelines for screening for the following three cancers: breast, cervical, and colorectal. There has been extensive promotion of cancer screening, such as brochures and posters related to colorectal, cervical, and breast cancer screening; prevention messages on how to reduce your cancer risk, as well as healthy living resources around nutrition, physical activity, alcohol management, and tobacco cessation; and infographics on most recent cancer screening rates for the cervical, colorectal, and breast cancer screening. We have cancer information that is available for the residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Putting out pamphlets and stuff like that don't mean nothing. It is good to have them in the community, but we need to know: what are the improvements of the healthcare system that the department is currently working on today?
I would like to speak about some activities that we are doing that are new. In the communities, the community health representatives are provided with training in relation to cancer screening. In the fall, as well as information on cancer prevention, screening, and healthy living resources, we are launching nine videos related to cervical, colorectal, and breast cancer screening in the Northwest Territories, and two videos will be launched to address cancer screening in general. The Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority is launching a pilot project on the cancer screening program in the Beaufort-Delta this month, in hopes of increasing the number of people being screened.
Today, I would like to consider establishing a dedicated position to manage travel arrangements for cancer patients, with a mandate to expedite travel, to minimize delays for the people who I represent in our small communities in the Beaufort-Delta as a whole, to get a doctor and a care unit going into the communities at least once a year to try to catch cancer. Because, by the time it is caught, it is either stage 3 or stage 4, and you can't do anything, and then we are losing loved ones because of the system. Is the Minister willing to work with me to do a pilot project in the Beaufort-Delta to provide service for all nine communities in the region, to prevent cancer?
The Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority just recently hired two full-time cancer nurse navigators. This is in order to assist patients and their families through the cancer care continuum. I understand the Member's question is to have a commitment to be able to go into the Beaufort-Delta communities and, at this time, this is something we will look into.
Thank you, Minister. Final short supplementary, Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So many families are affected by cancer. I am asking the Minister today to commit, just say yes with me, on a pilot project for the Beaufort-Delta to establish a team of professionals who will travel into the communities to do pre-screening for our elders and for the people who can't leave the community, who only go to the nursing station when they are really sick. They feel like they are not going to waste people's time, because, you know, they're not feeling well. They have to be really sick to go to the health centre. You know that, Mr. Speaker. All I am asking is if we could do a pilot project for one year, and then see how many people's lives we could save, the people who we serve. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Again, I mentioned earlier in my response that we recognize that cancer is high, not only in the Beaufort-Delta, but also in the Northwest Territories. I understand that the Member for Nunakput is asking for a commitment, and I recognize that, in the region, it is quite high. It is something that we will look into. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.
