Daryl Dolynny

Thank you, Madam Chair. I appreciate the Minister and deputy minister’s response. So it appears that we’re going to have more of a hybrid year, given the fact that some indicators will be available, some aren’t. Now I know how CIHI works and how they report. They report it as system-wide indicators and they’ll actually do facility indicators such as the Stanton Hospital. The differential information, that is available publicly. So if I wanted to gauge how well my hospital was versus the territory. I’m certain these parameters would be available for the public and that’s, I guess, the purpose...

I think this also lends to the overall question that I think myself as a Member has in terms of how this new layout looks and, again, the details behind this layout. I’m going to ask, at a point in time, if the Minister would commit to giving us more of a breakdown so we can actually understand some of these large $60 million, $15 million, what they are all encompassing. Again, because of the fairly large change in format here, would the Minister commit to providing that breakdown for committee once the main estimates are completed?

Thank you, Madam Chair. We know very well that with this activity there have been some changes with respect to how this has been arranged for this year, and I know the director is part of that and a responsibility of more the broad system of planning. With that, we know that before committee, and I know we’re talking about the new governance model where we should hope to streamline a lot of our administrative components throughout our authorities and, as mentioned in the House by the Minister, there may not be perceived savings. So, I guess, to the first question.

Will we not at least see some...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do appreciate the rationale. Just from an optics point of view you can imagine the dismay, as a committee member who fights very hard, tooth and claw, for every dollar. When I see a number regress, we need to find clarification.

In that same breath, my question is if this is indeed monies that were put aside for outside contributions in the realm of mental health and addictions. We know that Nats’ejee K’eh in its operating years was receiving about $2 million a year for mental health and addictions programs. If I look at the combined number here for outside investment...

Again, last year the committee recommended a move towards means testing for supplementary health benefits similar to what was found in other provinces with the expressed caveat that seniors be excluded from means testing.

Can the Minister indicate to the House why this was not done as well? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I understand it’s a daunting task, but I think in terms of no-show rates, I only need to lean in to make reference to my own personal dentist. I can tell you that I get no less than two or three reminders within 24 hours of my appointment, and I would feel very bad if I missed that appointment. I’m not sure if we’re doing that at the same level as we probably could be, as simple as notifying people of an appointment. To that, I’ll get a response, but I’d like to make reference to a great idea I heard from you, Madam Chair, that you brought into the House probably about...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we are fully aware, we are in a full operation budget season and it’s important that we reflect on some of the high-level questions as to a department’s performance in responding to the needs of the people it serves. With that in mind, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services on our stewardship of the Supplementary Health Program.

If one looks at the budget and health service programs under Supplementary Health Programs, and knowing full well that the cost of drugs and medical devices are on the rise, the budget has remained virtually flat at...

I’m encouraged by what I’m hearing and I’m hoping that the Minister will notify Members and committee if and when we have that as a 24 hour service for our residents.

Statistics that were given to us last year indicated that the no-show rate for family physicians was a whopping 13.8 percent. That means 13.8 residents out of 100 were missing their family doctor visits. I see here speciality clinics are now a separate category, and with speciality clinics it usually goes hand in hand with a lot more expensive services. Do we know what our no-show rates are for our speciality clinics?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As a territory, we struggle with mental illness every day, and although we see some great initiatives nationally on working together to create a stigma-free Canada, we are still failing.

While everyone in this room struggles to improve the quality of care while reducing the costs of our health care system, we seem to be missing the point. That is, the overwhelming evidence that access to mental health care in the NWT is poor.

Nationally, one in five people with depression get appropriate treatment, and we know this number is much higher in the North. Shockingly...

What would the budget be for that service?