Julie Green

After-care support is, obviously, a shared responsibility. We talked about transitional housing and how we would need to partner with ECE, Justice, MACA and housing in order to bring those transitional housing units to life with appropriate programming. We would certainly be continuing our relationship with Justice on services like the Wellness Court and integrated case management as well as the integrated service delivery initiative. I think what I need to understand from the Member is more specifically how having yet another level of integrated service would serve clients more effectively...

I have to find what page that is. Here it is. I'm just going to reiterate a point I made a little earlier. The department provides the administration, policy, legislation, communications, and oversight functions for what the health authorities do. It is, just by default, here in Yellowknife. There are 12 new positions. I see here that there is a Healthy Family Program regional coordinator in Hay River and another in Inuvik. The others are, as the Member said, based here. It doesn't mean that they do all of their work here, but it means that they are, within larger groups, add-ons to other...

Thank you. I think that there are a number of things that are happening in here. They don't actually relate to that HR unit that you are speaking of, to the best of my knowledge. My knowledge is not as great as the deputy minister's knowledge, so let's ask him.

Yes, thank you. The Office of the Public Guardian is actually in adult support services, and the staff there is the public guardian and an assistant. I don't think there is a budget increase, other than through the collective agreement, for this office in this fiscal year, but I will just turn to Ms. Mathison for additional information. Thank you.

Thank you for that question. Our primary focus in this area is on-the-land healing program. This is a community-based program where Indigenous government organizations apply to the department to obtain funding in order to deliver their own culturally relevant land-based mental health and addictions programming.

This fund is very flexible. It can be used to attract people to treatment. It can be used for family treatment. It can be used for after-care. It can be used for treatment itself. This is a community-based program, and it puts communities in charge of what this program is about and makes...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The department uses monitoring of indicators as an ongoing means to both provide program oversight and to provide planning in all areas, including mental health and addictions. Some of the things we look at include usage rates, wait times, common presenting concerns, topics of prevention and promotion efforts and that kind of thing to get a feel for what is going on. The data that is obtained is used to monitor performance and also adherence to the program mandate: does the data show that the program is properly focused and delivering the services for which it was...

After-care is a priority of this government. The focus at this point is on people rather than facilities. Our goal is to reach as many people as possible and give them the widest variety of choices for the kind of support they need for their own mental wellness. At this point, as I mentioned earlier, we don't have specific plans to build after-care facilities, but there is a working group that is looking at that possibility. Thank you.

These are separate programs. The wellness is funded by the federal government. The community counselling program is funded by the territorial government. That does not mean they do not work together, but they are funded in different ways is what I am saying. I am not aware that at this point a community wellness plan could activate the appointment of another Community Counselling Program staff, but that is something that I can certainly check into and respond to the Member with more detail.

We are interested in working across departments with the NWT Housing Corporation, the Department of Justice, and Education, Culture and Employment to talk about what kind of supports in transitional housing we can put in place. At this point, we don't have any firm plans to construct the facilities that the Member for Thebacha is talking about, but staff is in place to connect people exiting treatment with counselling and other supports that they require.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The department employs three regional community development and wellness planners who work with communities throughout the year to support actions and priorities under those wellness plans the Member mentioned. Their level of involvement is really community-driven. It can be very involved to not involved, depending on what the community wants and needs. There are annual allotments of funding to communities to realize their community wellness plans, and this funding is provided through flexible multi-year agreements. It's possible to carry over funds and move money...