Tom Beaulieu

For the details of the process, I’d like to have Mr. Heath provide response to the Member.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. To my left I have Derek Elkin, ADM, corporate services; and to my right, Perry Heath, director of infrastructure planning, Department of Health and Social Services.

Perhaps we have new detail. I’ll have one of the staff, Mr. Elkin, respond to the change.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to recognize Aurora College students in the Social Work Program in the gallery. First their instructor, Vanessa Rankin. The names of the students: Cheryl Cleary, Alice Mawdsley, Jolene Donovan, Lidya McLeod, Stephanie Rabesca, Vanessa Temple, Fiona Wray, Denise Mackay, Jessica Landry, Tanya Snowshoe and Lucy Kay.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. On the long-term care, we aren’t planning on discounting the work that Avens had done. Avens had presented the work to us. We’ve looked at it. I think we’re going to do some more studying on the information and do some of our own grafting on aging population. Like I indicated in my response to a previous Member, the numbers that we’re getting… The number at a national level and the numbers provided by Avens are fairly consistent. It’s just a matter of us checking the numbers to make sure we file our own information on that. I would say that wouldn’t be a huge job...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The wellness centre on the Hay River Reserve is definitely under Deh Cho Health and Social Services. However, the actual medical services to the Hay River Reserve have been provided by Hay River Health and Social Services Authority. We have to sort that out on that building.

I had a discussion with the head nurse out of Fort Providence, as she was asked by Deh Cho Health and Social Services to come to the opening of the wellness centre and to see what files were there that she could take, so that as they begin to man the wellness centre on the Hay River Reserve, they...

We’ve met with the Avens Society. They have a good plan. The plan is something that is intended to address all of the needs in the Northwest Territories as a fairly elaborate facility that is designed to support people that have long-term care needs and also dementia. Yes, we will continue to work with Avens. They’re the experts in long-term care and we’ll continue to work with them and we will engage them throughout the process.

I will commit to providing the information that we get from our study. I can’t quite understand the note here, so maybe I’ll have Mr. Heath add to what I’m committing to now.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. There are various numbers that do come out. They are all fairly consistent. We have numbers from a national perspective. We have numbers from the territorial perspective from Avens. We ourselves at Health and Social Services are currently doing a long-term care assessment. I don’t remember exactly when we’re scheduled to finish that. Maybe I’ll have Mr. Elkin just give you a time when we’re anticipating that work to be completed.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The current facility was constructed in 1983 and does not meet the current needs of the community and of the region. This is going to be a level B facility being constructed there and should be roughly double the size of the current building. So essentially what is planned is the long-term care facility in Fort Simpson is still a building that is useable, still very functional and still meets the needs of the long-term care in Fort Simpson and the area that uses it. So that part of the building will remain and the new health centre without the long-term care will be...