Sandy Lee

We estimate that this year’s expenditure will be at about $41 million, and the expenditures we could claim as per the agreement will be about $25.6 million, which gives us a gap of about $15 million a year.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is the third month of ’08–09. We are, as the deputy minister indicated earlier, engaged in restructuring of the department, where the health side of the mandate is more specifically laid out. This is probably my layperson’s explanation of that. I could have the deputy minister explain more of that.

We do have the remaining nine months to finish reorganizing the department and to make sure we do more in-depth research into how to re-profile and realign the positions so we minimize the impact on the programs and services.

I could ask the deputy minister for more...

Yes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. May 18, 2008, marks the four-year anniversary of the Tele-Care Health Line service. This 24-7 telephone service provides family health and support information to the residents of the NWT through the Tele-Care Health Line call centre.

The volume of calls through this service has steadily increased in four years, from 4,019 in 2004–2005 to 5,923 in 2007–2008. A total of 20,374 calls have been received since the service first began. As a result, we can statistically assume that 5,417 individuals have participated in self-care activities that may have reduced the pressure on...

I’ll get that for the Member.

Mr. Chairman, absolutely. I think that’s what I’ve been saying. Once again, there are 17 positions impacted in the Department of Health and Social Services. It’s all in the department, not in the authorities. Out of 17, nine positions were vacant, which means there are no active bodies impacted there. Out of those impacted 17 positions…. In six positions there were incumbents there, and most of them have been reassigned or they have places to go.

We looked at whether there were vacant positions, whether any of those positions could be rewritten or re-profiled so it did not impact the program...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As of May 2008, we have 24.5 funded positions and two unfunded positions for nurse practitioners.

Currently, out of those, 11 funded NP positions are filled, plus two unfunded. So out of 26.5 NP positions available, we have 14 positions filled. Seven of them are in Yellowknife, one is in Resolution, one is in Smith, and two are in Fort Providence.

There are two unfunded positions at Stanton, as Members are aware, that we have funded for six months. And there is half PY funding being used for NP relief in Yellowknife.

Mr. Chairman, I could also add that there are 12 NP...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The headquarters person in Yellowknife…. We have one in headquarters, one in Inuvik, one in Yellowknife Health Authority, one at Stanton. We are proposing to eliminate the positions at Stanton and the Yellowknife Health Authority.

I could advise the Member that the elimination of these positions does not impact, in any way, the department’s ability to follow our mandate and deliver the programs and services we have been given to do. We just have to do them differently.

I understand that that bursary program still exists — it’s just reduced — and it still meets the level of demand or interest that has been shown in the past.