Julie Green

I have previously and continued to acknowledge that there is a gap in services within some communities in terms of having a paramedic response in the appropriate vehicle and equipment to provide that response. I have committed to speaking with the Minister of MACA about this to see what kind of solution we can put in place. I intend to make good on that.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This policy is a policy of the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority regarding their operations. The decision to amend that policy would be an operational decision on their part. The policies are reviewed regularly, and this policy is due for review again in June of 2022. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following three documents: "Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 584-19(2): Community Wellness Plans;" "Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 586-19(2): Stanton Territorial Hospital Medical Detox Service;" and "Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 602-19(2): Response to Medical Emergencies in Small Communities." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Admission to long-term care has a single point of entry for the whole NWT. It's called the Territorial Admissions Committee. That committee includes membership from the health authorities; that is to say, professional health people from the health authorities and a public representative. They review all the applications to long-term care to determine eligibility. I don't know what the residency requirement is for that, but that's something that I can find out and come back to the Member with.

They, of course, manage the wait lists for long-term care beds, and I just have some updated...

Thank you. Mr. Speaker, homecare, of course, is not new. It has been offered for years. We recently had the program reviewed by a third party, and they came up with some very strong recommendations for us to look closely at homecare services, what services we provide, where, and when. Those recommendations are going to be implemented within the life of this Assembly. The building piece is not really the Health and Social Services Department piece. It's really up to the NWT Housing Corporation. A few weeks ago, I went with the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation to Fort Good Hope...

The Member is right. It's variable in the legislation across the country, which is directed at the provincial and territorial level. We have a CPHO; other places have a Chief Medical Officer. Some of them have a lot more autonomy than others, different reporting relationships, so really the only thing that matters is our own legislation and the powers that it gives the CPHO to manage a public health emergency. Are they the right powers? Are they being used properly? Are they the most effective response? I think these are all really great questions that we will revisit when the pandemic is over...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the question. Some of the things that we need to look at in order to advance both the relaxation of internal restrictions and the relaxation of the border include things such as vaccine uptake in the NWT and what the science says about how effective the vaccines are to stop the transmission of the virus. We know the vaccines are effective to stop severe illness, but we don't know whether, once you have the vaccine, you can still carry the virus with you. You could still be exposed, and then carry the virus with you to another location. We have a...

Again, I don't have an exact number, but the point of refocusing the long-term care beds is to enable people to age in place. We recognize that, for people to stay at home for as long as possible, they will need homecare support for some of their everyday tasks, whether that's bathing, mobility, food services. It might also be a visit from the public health nurse. There will be more homecare resources required in Hay River and in other communities in the NWT. The department is planning for that by entering into a partnership with Aurora College to enhance training of personal support workers...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Member for the question. The bed projection for Hay River is now 24 beds, and what happened to the other 24 is they are going to Fort Smith, where there is a need for more long-term care. The overarching goal here is to help people age in place. Obviously, we want people from people to Fort Smith to age in Fort Smith, if they can, rather than in Hay River. Thank you.

We're talking about the difference here between nurses and first responders. There is a difference. They work in different settings; they have different kinds of training; they have access to different kinds of equipment. It's not just a matter of saying to the nurse, "You're free to go and attend an emergency outside of the health centre." There is quite a bit more to it than that. I also want to note that nurses in the health centres are busy seeing people in the health centres. There would be a question then of how much further we can stretch the resources within the health centres if...