Rocky Simpson

Thank you, Madam Chair. And I apologize to the Minister, I might have embellished a bit there when I said good luck. So I apologize for that. But, you know, it is tough for, you know, people who are looking for detox when there are no dedicated beds. They are put in the health centre and they may they may or they may not be provided a bed. But they need that support, especially when they decide it's you know, they want to be there. And some of them will go in, I know, and they will maybe last a day and they'll get out again and go right back to what they were doing.

The other thing that I...

That's all. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Earlier today the Minister mentioned that we have a physician shortage of approximately 40 percent 46 percent. Is that reflected in the budget, or do we carry that number, I guess, for a full complement of physicians, or do we budget based on that we're always going to be, you know, short physicians, because it seems like it could be a substantial number. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yeah, you know, I think it would be well worth adding that into, something like that for the smaller communities. Like I say, it's not a big cost and I think that would you know, it would really be beneficial to homeowners. So, again, I just ask the Minister to you know, if she would at least commit to looking into it and hopefully doing and the other thing is talk to her colleague there, the Minister responsible for Housing as well because a lot of the units are public housing units and maybe they can be incorporated into that, you know, over a number of years and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I apologize to the Minister for putting her on the spot without giving her questions ahead of time, but I guess what I'm trying to I'm going to do here is offer a solution. It's a small one. But, like, power outages in small remote communications can be devastating. So would the Minister be willing to support an upgrade to homes that would allow for them to tie in small generators? Because most communities, a lot of people have smaller generators and if they have an upgrade to their panel, they can the power goes out; they'll be able to flick a breaker and be able...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, healthcare in the North appears to be falling apart. And I know people not receiving proper medical diagnosis or not receiving proper medical care at all. This is causing stress in the community, families, and patients' physical and mental health. Mr. Speaker, right now we need physicians in Hay River. We have none. In fact, we need 5.6 FTEs, Mr. Speaker. I ask the Minister if she will commit to providing Hay River with those positions immediately? After all, our health is no less important than those living in Yellowknife or other areas. Thank you.

That's all. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, timely access to healthcare and proper diagnosis is very important to residents of Hay River and the surrounding communities. I hear more often now that those who can afford it are bypassing medical travel and making their way south to seek those very services that are not being delivered here on a timely and consistent basis. For those that don't have financial resources to travel, they are forced to wait for services.

Mr. Speaker, we are seeing an increase in payments for outofterritory healthcare. What is the reason for it, and will the department...

Thank you, Madam Chair. And with that program, is do you see a need, I guess, for home care support as well to sort of back up that caregiver position? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, too often residents are receiving notices of physician shortages in Hay River. And without physicians in the community, proper health care cannot be dispensed. This may mean turning away those who are in need of emergency care, routine appointments, palliative care, detox services, and mental health services. Mr. Speaker, it is no secret that the community of Hay River is having issues with staffing of physicians for the Hay River Regional Health Centre. This issue has been ongoing for some time and continues to affect timely access to healthcare and...