Lesa Semmler

Member Inuvik Twin Lakes

Minister of Health and Social Services

Lesa Semmler currently serves as the Member representing Inuvik Twin Lakes in the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, having been re-elected to the position. Born in Yellowknife, NT, and raised in Inuvik, where she still resides, Ms. Semmler has deep roots in the Northwest Territories. 

A Registered Nurse, Ms. Semmler graduated from the Aurora College Northern Nursing Program in 2000 and earned her Community Health Nurse Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association in 2008. With 15 years of frontline nursing experience at the Inuvik Regional Hospital, she focused on Acute Care, Homecare, and Public Health. Her career also included roles as the Manager of Acute Care Services and eventually the Regional Manager of Acute Care Services under the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority. Notably, she served as the Inuvialuit Health System Navigator at the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, assisting Inuvialuit Beneficiaries in navigating the healthcare system. 

Beyond her healthcare career, Ms. Semmler has actively contributed to education and community service. She served on the Inuvik District Education Authority, assuming the role of Chair from 2015 to 2018, and chaired the Beaufort Delta Education Council. Ms. Semmler participated in various working groups at the territorial and national levels, including the Inuit Tuberculosis Elimination Board and the Inuit Midwifery Revitalization. Her commitment to social justice is evident in her voluntary work as a member of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls National Family Advisory Circle, where she worked to ensure northern voices were heard and represented. Lesa Semmler's life and career reflect her passion for healthcare, education, and advocating for the well-being of her community.

Inuvik Twin Lakes Electoral District

Committees

Inuvik Twin Lakes
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Extension
12195
Constituency Office

198 Mackenzie Rd
Unit 123
Inuvik NT X0E 0T0
Canada

P.O. Box
3130
Constituency Phone
Minister
Email
Minister of Health and Social Services

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

No. I am on page 189.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The time most individuals spend in a southern residential treatment facility represents a small period of time when you compare the many years a person has taken to get themselves to the recovery stage. Going to a treatment facility is the biggest and most important step for many in their journey to recovery from addiction, but it is only one step that is part of their healing journey. When we look at our communities, we lack the supports required to help them remain in recovery. This creates endless cycles of homelessness, family violence, and trips to southern...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

No further questions. Thank you.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Okay. No, I just wanted to make sure. We look at and see the homecare. We see long-term care. When you're in a community the size of mine, you see people working in long-term care, going from house to house. They would have different jobs. They have different circles, and then they have family circles. They take precaution to go in. I get that the CPHO has put these rules in place to protect our most vulnerable elders, but on the other hand, I also think there's some mechanism in there for maybe some extra support for that so that people are able to do the things...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Within that homecare and support services, and I see that there is long-term care and supported living, the Minister has said that there is training with the college. Within the department, is there staff looking at addressing the issue with the job descriptions where a lot of Aboriginal people who are taking Aurora College are finding they are hitting a barrier when they do not have the one year of experience as to entering after they have just finished taking the personal support worker and have been working in their practicum within these facilities? Thank you, Mr...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I know I have raised it in the House, and I know we have health navigators who know where, if you need an application, you go here; if you need this, you go here; and you phone them and you know that. However, a lot of our elders and a lot of people who are coming into our hospitals from the small communities, Indigenous people, even within Yellowknife facility, that's a scary facility; even for somebody coming out of Inuvik, that's a scary facility. It's a big facility. You can get lost in there. That's more of a comment.

We keep talking about how, in order to bridge this...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Thank you. In my past work and knowing that some of this information about the people who are outside the NWT are a large number from my region, I have also found that the costs of these facilities have gone up significantly over a number of years, and I'm just wondering if that is accurate and if we can get a confirmation of an average of what we pay. I know there is a large amount of different -- people are living at different levels of care. I'm just wondering if there is a breakdown of what these levels of care are and the average cost that we pay per person out-of-territory annually, or...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 62)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My question was: is there dedicated staff within this funding to have that engagement in this budget with Indigenous governments, especially the ones who are saying they want to do this? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 59)

Thank you, Member. Minister of MACA.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 59)

Thank you, Member. Minister of MACA.