Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the department is working to improve nurse-to-patient ratios right now in long-term care. However, due to nursing shortages it's important that we use realistic numbers because our staffing levels change so much in the Northwest Territories. And I just want to make sure that it's clear that nurse-to-patient ratios are already in place. This is why when we don't have enough staff, we can't perform essential tasks and sometimes we need to reduce services or temporarily close units because of a matter of patient safety. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following eight documents: Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 47-2(1): Yellowknife Wellness and Recovery Centre; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 78-2(1): Access to Family Doctors Response; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 103-2(1): Alcohol Strategy Implementation Response; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 109-20(1): Extended Health Benefits Policy Response; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 111-20(1): Provision of Health Services to Nunavut Clients; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 148-20(1): Health care in NWT Communities; Follow-up Letter for Oral...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the NTHSSA has informed me and the Department of the increase in volume and acuity of patients in Stanton. The thought was that, you know, the -- after COVID, we would go back to pre-COVID in-patient, but what we're seeing are sicker patients and the acuity of these patients. And I understand since 2023, the number of patients has been steadily increasing. That's put pressure on the in-patient and emergency departments. It's led to longer wait times for patients, and it's significantly increasing the work staff load.

I also committed in this House in...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the minimum nurse-to-patient ratio are best addressed through the standards of practice that are more easily changed rather than through legislation, which is a similar approach being taken with BC but they are using a policy directive. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, yes and I'm glad that the Member you know, we work closely with Alberta Health Services' dialysis service to provide this service using their policies and stuff, and they do take training to be dialysis nurses. So it's the same as we have an endoscopy unit, we have to have trained staff to run that endoscopy unit. Like, those it's more than just hiring a nurse. And I've said it, and I'll say it again, a nurse is not a nurse is not a nurse. Everybody has a specialty, and that's why we struggle in our health care providing the right service for the right people...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, having the dialysis equipment in Inuvik, you know, we have a lot of people that might need that have kidney disease but not all of them, and then I think in the territories we have 568 residents living with some degree of kidney disease, and then 87 clients with stage 4/5 renal disease, and those are the people that are potentially, if not already, on dialysis. Yellowknife has the capacity for a certain amount. Hay River, I think, is they are at capacity now. And, you know, what I'm willing to do for the Member is to review how many clients, you know, in...

Yes. Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not sure I understand if the question is the direction from the headquarters or because in all of the regions, we have regional diabetes educators. We have community health representative workers that work with you know, with health promotion and health in that area so if the you know, if there's a specific question, I would try to get the answer for the Member. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Member for raising this. In the small communities, we you know, we tend to get a lot of concerns we gotten a lot of concerns in this House when I was a Member, and we continue to hear stories but what I can say is we like, I cannot comment on individual cases in this House, but every report that every time there's a complaint, every report that's given to you know, that is put forward is looked into.

The other thing that I wanted to say is, you know, the Office of Client Experience is a new department. It had its oneyear...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for that question. Mr. Speaker, you know, we've heard in this House many times from many members, especially the representatives from the small communities, on health care in the small communities and, you know, we were we're going not just the Northwest Territories but Canada has been struggling with health care service providers, getting hiring permanent nursing, permanent doctors, so I think that there has been some work done. And I've mentioned this, you know, working with the paramedics in the small communities when needed to make...