Glen Abernethy

That is correct, Mr. Chair. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, as I said before, there are 11 new positions. Seven of them have been filled. We've got four that are currently being recruited for. I can't say why we were unsuccessful in previous recruitments, but they are currently out for recruitment.

Two of them that are out for recruitment are Nahanni Butte and K'aagee in the Member's riding. We've also got one that we're trying to fill in Lutselk'e. We've got one that we're still trying to fill in Inuvik. The rest of them have been filled. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I hear the Member. I guess, to be clear, the formula we are working on together with the existing shelters isn't just a monetary thing. It is a service-level discussion, as well. Recognizing that right now, where shelters don't exist, there is money to bring people in. We need to make sure that those mechanisms exist. That doesn't mean we shouldn't explore what the Member is talking about.

We need to make sure we have these service levels understood so that we are getting as much for the money that we have. Then I think we will be in a better position once we have some...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Once again, my memory of that particular conversation is around what we wanted to do in the individual authorities so that individuals have an opportunity to provide or register their concerns in the Territorial Authorities, so it can be reviewed by our quality assurance staff and so that recommendations can be made for improvements.

Now, having said that, there are also other venues for our residents to make complaints. For instance, if a resident has a concern about a physician, there is a formal mechanism for residents to make complaints about physicians. If a resident...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I believe the RFP says, "frail elders." So I think that's where the priority is being placed, but I accept the need for flexibility and we'll see what kind of proposals we get. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I do hear the Member and I do know that, in some communities, we have longer wait times than in other communities. We're certainly trying to find ways to deal with that, whether it's through processes or other means. We are moving forward with the creation of more youth mental health counsellors for kids, to get children when they're young, so that hopefully we'll have been able to address problems before they reach adulthood, which we hope will give us exactly what the Member is talking about, about people being able to function normally.

There are also other...

We actually have hired a midwifery consultant and we are working with the different midwives in the Northwest Territories to help strengthen the existing services, but our territorial consultants are also working with us to update our procedures and our guidelines to make sure that they're current and they make sense. Those are building upon the recommendations.

I'm happy to have a meeting with committee if committee so desires to walk through where we are and where we're going and where we hope to be by the end of this Assembly.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm not sure I understand the question. We need to determine the amount of money we're going to need to bring the authority, which means working with their pension, but also working with the union is the number of things that have to happen. It's not just pension costs. There are going to be some other costs. We need to know what those are before we can have an informed discussion in this room or in this Assembly.

On top of that, historically we've been spending about $1 million a year. Until such a time as it is properly resolved, I anticipate that those costs will...

No, Mr. Chair. No, I'm just kidding. Yes, this is the section, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, and we're looking forward to rolling this out. I mean, we know there are going to be a few challenges along the way, but we heard from the kids. We heard from the kids, and they indicated this is an important tool and resource they need. I'm happy to see the support we have from committee, and I'm happy to continue to push this forward over the next four years, this year starting in the Deh Cho. Thank you.