Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I speak today on the need to maintain Aurora College’s vital Nurse Practitioner Master of Nursing and Introduction to Advanced Practice programs. The introduction to the Nurse Practitioner Program offered since 1989 is a six-week program running three times a year with an average of 12 nurses attending. Graduating nurses gain advanced health assessment skills and techniques needed to practice in remote rural communities.
According to the course instructor, this training has been proven to prevent the sometimes disastrous treatment and cost consequences when “nurses were hired who were not adequately prepared to work in advanced practice.” What are these consequences? The inability to distinguish between medevac cases and those who could be treated in the community. It includes nurses who “arrive in the community, stay for two or three days, realize they were in over their heads and leave on the next available plane.” Imagine the cost both in money and patient care.
The Nurse Practitioner Masters Program was established in 2001 on the recommendation of an independent program review in the ‘90s. There have been 14 graduates, 12 of whom are still working in the NWT. Four more are expected to graduate this year. ECE tells me this program will continue until 2012, depending on demand and funding. However, other sources tell me that the program will end when federal funds are cut in 2012.
The value of the two programs is unanimously endorsed by graduates, employers and community members. Yet, despite the fact that the 2010-2011 Health and Social Services business plan says that “the GNWT is committed to increasing the number of nurse practitioners in the NWT,” it appears that both programs will probably disappear.
This government struggles with health professional recruitment and retention and high position vacancy rates. These two programs train professionals who save us money in recruitment and operating costs and who provide masters level health professional care and deliver high quality treatment relative to the communities we serve.
Mr. Speaker, nurse practitioners, nurses skilled in rural practice and the nursing station health care model are the way to go. How could we possibly risk this loss? I’ll be asking the Minister of ECE and possibly Health and Social Services questions. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
