Kieron Testart

Mr. Speaker, I'm also being told that people have to -- are being told in the departments when they want to change appointments or if they need to change appointments with the doctors, they have to call the central booking mechanism, whether that be a phone call or an email or something like that. Why are we making it more cumbersome? Isn't there a way to do this more or less on the fly; why are we adding extra steps for patients when they're trying to access health care? Should we not be making it simpler, let people talk to their doctors, they're health care providers, and change...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I heard from a constituent today who had to wait nine -- or sorry, had to wait 11 months for an ultrasound appointment. He tells me that it's a 9 to 10 monthly wait for a routine ultrasound. We've recently changed the appointment system here in Yellowknife. It was supposed to speed this up. We heard early reports that we were getting more people into appointments, not less. Why are we continuing to experience such a great backlog for people who are just trying to get routine appointments like this? We're not talking about major surgeries; we're talking...

Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump's illegal tariffs on Canadian exports come into place tomorrow. We were optimistic in our hopes that diplomacy was an option, but, unfortunately, no matter how unlawful, unwarranted, or irrational these tariffs may be, they are the new reality for our country. After decades of friendship, the American President has betrayed our values of mutual benefit to initiate a bitter trade war where any cooperation between nations has become purely transactional. The United States has become a bully akin to Russia or North Korea using threat and intimidation to pursue their...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Minister provide the stats from the entire territory broken down by community at a future date? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, sometimes we get questions on the fly and we need to ask them. These are important things.

Another question, how are these changes -- how many appointments have increased since the number -- have the number appointments available to patients increased since these changes have done? Are we seeing more people since the changes have been done? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I appreciate that. Is there any kind of a plan to expand veterinary medicine in the Northwest Territories? Currently we only have four vets, I believe, working and only two doing small animal medicine. Does the department have any programs or supports available that would ease in the recruitment and retention of veterinarians in the Northwest Territories?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I recently learned that it's the Minister of Health and Social Services's responsibility to regulate veterinarians in the Northwest Territories through the Veterinarian Medical Act. One of the issues that's come up recently with a closure of a clinic here in Yellowknife is vet records do not move with the vet if they open their own clinic. This is a concern for patients. They want to ensure that their pet care continues to follow their vet. Can the Minister let us know how she can help make that possible because currently our Act does not allow for that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one other thing that needs to happen that's not covered by legislation is the latency periods for testicular, colorectal, and esophageal cancer. These latency periods need to be shorter. They're currently not to the national standard. Is the Minister also looking at working with his counterparts -- or sorry, is the WSCC working on shortening these latency periods as well? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, first responders are real life super heros. They run towards danger to save lives using incredible skills few possess. We rely on them to protect us and they, in turn, rely on us to do all we can to prioritize their safety and well-being because unlike in comic books and action movies, there are no super powers that can make them immune to illness and injury.

When wounded warriors stepped up to provide easier access to services for firefighters, particularly regarding mental health, it revealed a gap that showed PTSD was not covered by WSCC legislation. This gap also revealed...

Thank you. And thank you to the Premier for this. I mean, this is an area we do agree on. I'm glad it's in the mandate. I just want to see it moving as quickly as possible. So I'll probably continue to raise this issue going forward. But I think those -- and I want to just give a shout out to integrated service delivery as well. Like I've -- we've directed many -- I've done a Member's statement on it, we've directed many constituents there, and I'll just take the opportunity to say they do amazing work. It is not an easy job to provide that care, but I know constituents and clients really do...