Bob Bromley

Mr. Chairman, what is the relief costing for? Is that for physicians or nurses, that sort of thing?

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Ms. Meade.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Elkin.

I would like to thank the Minister and her witnesses and ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to escort the witnesses from the House.

I hate to waste questions like this, Mr. Speaker. Sorry. I hate to waste questions like this. I asked what the Minister is proposing, not what she’d like to see. I wonder if I could get that answered. And while we’re at it, has there been evaluation of the existing Healthy Families programs? Mahsi.

The current delivery of the Healthy Families Program in four communities has been endorsed by all and provides the basis for rolling this program out across the Territory. We know dollars are short, but the demonstrated, almost miraculous, benefits of nurse-family programs shows this is where we should be staking our resources. Our existing small community nursing station delivery model and our social services Healthy Families programs provides the basis on which to build.

I will be pushing for maximum emphasis on this approach and will be asking the Minister questions on how to pursue this to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Monday, February 7, 2011, I will move the following motion: Now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Great Slave, that Tabled Document 135-16(5), Response to the Standing Committee on Social Programs Report on the Review of the Child and Family Services Act, be referred to Committee of the Whole for consideration.

At the appropriate time I will be seeking unanimous consent to deal with this motion today.

Unfortunately, my questions are accumulating here, Mr. Speaker. I’m just not getting answers. I asked, had an evaluation been done of the existing programs. I asked what the Minister is proposing. Apparently, there is a document to be tabled today. Supposedly, the Minister knows that if she’s proposing to do nothing, I need to know that, Mr. Speaker. I will add a third question. Given that major benefits from programs such as the Healthy Families accrue to the Department of Justice, ECE and other departments, including Health and Social Services to get us out from these budget pressures we’re...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. I just want to start by noting that the Standing Committee on Social Programs did have the courtesy of sharing with the Minister our draft report on the review of the Child and Family Services Act, and we were pleased to do so. I want to preface my questions by noting that it would have been great to see the department’s response to it before it was tabled today. But not having seen it, when is the Minister proposing to get the Healthy Families Program into every community in the Northwest Territories...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Early investments in the health and well-being of mothers and children through nurse-family programs pays huge benefits down through the years. Good work is underway in four communities through the Healthy Families Program at the Department of Health and Social Services and I look forward to hearing more details on any expansion to be proposed in this year’s budget.

Nurse-family programs focus on improving prenatal health, reducing child abuse and enhancing family functioning in the first two years of the child’s life. Unlike many mental health, substance abuse and crime...