Lesa Semmler

Member Inuvik Twin Lakes

Minister of Health and Social Services
Minister Responsible for the Status of Women 

Lesa Semmler currently serves as the Member representing Inuvik Twin Lakes in the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, having been re-elected to the position. Born in Yellowknife, NT, and raised in Inuvik, where she still resides, Ms. Semmler has deep roots in the Northwest Territories. 

A Registered Nurse, Ms. Semmler graduated from the Aurora College Northern Nursing Program in 2000 and earned her Community Health Nurse Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association in 2008. With 15 years of frontline nursing experience at the Inuvik Regional Hospital, she focused on Acute Care, Homecare, and Public Health. Her career also included roles as the Manager of Acute Care Services and eventually the Regional Manager of Acute Care Services under the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority. Notably, she served as the Inuvialuit Health System Navigator at the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, assisting Inuvialuit Beneficiaries in navigating the healthcare system. 

Beyond her healthcare career, Ms. Semmler has actively contributed to education and community service. She served on the Inuvik District Education Authority, assuming the role of Chair from 2015 to 2018, and chaired the Beaufort Delta Education Council. Ms. Semmler participated in various working groups at the territorial and national levels, including the Inuit Tuberculosis Elimination Board and the Inuit Midwifery Revitalization. Her commitment to social justice is evident in her voluntary work as a member of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls National Family Advisory Circle, where she worked to ensure northern voices were heard and represented. Lesa Semmler's life and career reflect her passion for healthcare, education, and advocating for the well-being of her community.

Inuvik Twin Lakes Electoral District

Committees

Lesa Semmler
Inuvik Twin Lakes
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Constituency Office

125 Mackenzie Rd
Unit 203
Inuvik NT X0E 0T0
Canada

P.O. Box
3130
Constituency Phone
Minister
Email
Minister of Health and Social Services

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are -- you know, there's the CEO, the territorial medical director. There is a vacancy that's being covered. How there are -- members of physicians that sit on the primary care reform team. So how and who wasn't informed, I can't -- like, I can't specify how that communication went to the physicians and how the information was released or how it was reported to them that it was going to be released at this time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned, within the primary care reform, you know, whatever tools that they had, whether it be the physician work plan, you know, I can't speak to exactly what parts or which sections or -- that are being used. But what I'm being -- you know, being advised of is that this plan is being integrated and parts of it that meet the needs of primary care reform. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, whether I believe it is or I don't believe it is, I think what the Member -- what I would like to provide so that the Members of this House and the Member for Yellowknife North wants, I think is getting to the bottom is are these -- you know, these -- like, these teams going to be what needs to happen. We don't know right now. So what is happening is the framework is currently being developed to provide clear direction and performance benchmarks for this initiative. And these are going to be completed by 2025 but the -- in the -- what was there, you know...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned that there are many documents that are drafted within the health and social services as we move forward, this document was created in 2020. It was used at the time and the people in the territory may be aware that we used to have a physician-centered care model in the territory. The rest of Canada, and everybody knows -- and especially in the Northwest Territories -- we want a wholistic model for the Northwest Territories. And so, you know, whether or not this report, there are many reports within the health and social services that try to...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize two pages that are here representing Inuvik Twin Lakes, Dallas Krutko and Keefer Ciboci-Raymond. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is another area within NTHSSA that is unfunded. It was a -- it was a pilot but it was unfunded so it added to the deficit. And so what was done with this project after review that the services could be, you know, done from within. But what I can do to commit to the Member is to going back to that information that I received and be able to respond to the Member later. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, if I -- the first part of the question is the occupancy date for the wellness and recovery centre would be late 2026. If -- and then for the TTC building, as the Member has referred to, I will put -- bring that over to -- pass that over to the ADM to respond to that. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for that question because that's the same question that I'd asked the department as to why could we do things during COVID and we can't do them now, and it's privacy, and there were exceptions made during the public health emergency that allowed for certain things that wouldn't meet the standards of our privacy. And so we are looking into those options right now as to what tool could be used. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the long-term care facilities, you know -- and I hear where the Member is coming from. We do spend a lot of specialized out of territory based-care for our residents in the Northwest Territories. The thing with that, it's not space in the territory. Like, we don't -- but it's the specialty that they require of care. And long-term care, the levels of care that we provide in our long-term care facilities, you know, depending on where -- you know, if you're in Inuvik, there's only a certain level of care that is able to be provided. In, you know -- and then we...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. If I may turn it over to Mr. Heath. Thank you.