Mr. Speaker, my statement today is to emphasize the importance of post-secondary education in the Northwest Territories. Everyone is different and each one of us has different goals and ambitions in life. One of the benefits of living in this great territory, in this wonderful country, is that each of us has the right and the ability to choose our own path. As a result, our population is made up of trappers and carpenters, welders and lawyers, entrepreneurs and teachers, hunters and pilots. The wide variety of paths available to Northerners are all achieved in different ways, but all require a solid education. For some, their education happens in the bush; for others, it's in the cockpit of an aircraft; for many, required education happens in a classroom.
One of the challenges for residents of the NWT to choose whatever career path they want, is the availability of post-secondary education here at home in the North. Depending on the career they choose, young people may have to move away from home to get the education they need. Not only can that be expensive in spite of the NWT's generous Student Financial Assistance Program, but it's hard to have to move away from home and family to get an education. For that reason, I think it's important that our territory provides all possible support to post-secondary institutions that are emerging in the North. Not only will that allow Northerners to realize their individual dreams and goals, it also helps our territory to become a stronger well-rounded society, not only by providing a broad range of opportunities for Northerners but also by attracting academics, professionals, and students from around the world, people who want to learn about our part of the world, about northern peoples, cultures, languages, and ways of life.
Currently, Aurora College provides an excellent service with the programming that it offers. Other academic institutions, like the Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning and the College nordique, are expanding into other fields and specialities. These and other institutions of post-secondary learning deserve our clear support and endorsement. Call it what you may, a university of the North or a territorial centre of excellence, the development of institutions of higher learning will provide opportunities for Northerners. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to finish my Member’s statement. Thank you.
---Unanimous consent granted
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, colleagues. Beyond that, it will attract thinkers, authors, researchers, and specialists whose work will expand the northern body of knowledge, increase our capacity across the territory, and develop our abilities as a society. Later I will have questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment about our support for post-secondary education in the NWT.
Masi. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise in the House to speak about issues and challenges facing our health care system in Nahendeh. On February 17, 2016, I received a letter from one of my constituents who has experienced some issues with our health centre. I shared this letter with the Minister and asked a few questions to start the process of addressing these issues and I thank the Minister for responding to me. Since receiving this letter a Facebook page was developed asking for people's comments and their experience with our health centre. There are very some very positive comments with the service, especially when comparing it to the system down south. They talked about the hard work and commitment of some of the staff. They also stressed the importance of coming up with proposed solutions to make service better. There were others who are concerned with the service. In going over the comments as well as emails and texts, I feel it is best to use their own words:
Everything seems to pivot around saving money and the convenience of management.
The needs of people seeking medical help seems to be an inconvenience to the system.
No more walk-ins are allowed; you must book a doctor's appointment at least two weeks in advance. Gone are the days where mornings were reserved for people who had appointments with doctors and the afternoons were walk-ins with no appointments. The big issue was nobody knew how this change about. There did not seem to be any consultation with the community.
There has been numerous times where people needed assistance after hours and they would have to argue with people on-call for help. Sometimes they would refuse to see the patients, other times they would see them and tell them “There's nothing wrong. Take two Aspirins and come back later on if you don't feel well.” This cannot continue. Mr. Speaker, what concerns me is that people outside the large centres do not seem to understand what it is like to live in our small to medium communities. These people have hospitals, clinics, and doctors to provide excellent service. Another struggle we have is the department's inability to fill positions with full-time staff and the need to use rotating staff. The people in Nahendeh would love to have the department recruit and bring in nurses and doctors to live and be part of our community and the region. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to continue with my statement, please.
---Unanimous consent granted
In closing, Mr. Speaker, when Fort Simpson was downgraded from a hospital to a wellness centre, we were promised we would have the same service and would not notice a difference. Well, I'd have to say that this is not true. Later on, I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
Masi. Members' statements. Member for Sahtu.
Today I want to discuss the decentralization of the Sahtu region. As said, the Sahtu region is not a region by itself even though you refer to it as the “Sahtu region,” but it is very much similar to many other areas of our great northern Canadian country. The Sahtu region, also, is currently experiencing limited amount of authority underneath the regime set by others or whenever the case was. My predecessor, Norman Yakeleya, keeps bringing it up in the past and we had some chats, and I look forward to moving his word forward as we progress. Later on today, I will have some questions for the Premier on the issue of decentralization for the Sahtu.
