Mr. Speaker, ensuring residents across the Northwest Territories continue to have access to health care that is safe, reliable and equitable is a top priority for me, and for this government, and for the Northwest Territories health and social services system. Today, I am pleased to share an update about the work we are doing within that system to improve care in small community health centres and health cabins.
Just like every jurisdiction in Canada, our healthcare system is strained by staffing shortages. As a country, we simply are not graduating enough doctors, nurses, and allied professionals to meet the demand. This has contributed to the most competitive recruitment environment we have ever seen in the Northwest Territories. That pressure is compounded by the challenges of recruiting and retaining staff to work in the many small and remote communities across our territory.
The department is working closely with the health and social services authority to lessen the impact of ongoing staffing shortages, make service delivery more efficient, and protect equitable access to care across the territory while we recruit to fill vacancies. Our work is focused on making care in small communities more sustainable, adopting smarter practices and new technologies to improve efficiency and getting results, getting the right mix of health professionals in our health centres and health cabins, and above all ensuring every resident has equitable access to care, no matter where they live.
This work focuses on finding more sustainable ways to deliver healthcare service in small communities, identifying methods, practices, or technologies that make those services more efficient and effective, balancing the right mix of healthcare professionals in health centres and health cabins, and ensuring that everyone has equitable access to care regardless of where they live.
To support this work, we have established a working group with members from all three health and social services authorities. To date, this group has reviewed and assessed the current state of the system, performed a gap analysis to identify areas needing improvement, gathered input from frontline staff to explore new approaches and evaluate promising practices, and conducted a jurisdictional scan that included targeted engagement with similar jurisdictions and with Indigenous Services Canada.
Mr. Speaker, this work resulted in five recommendations, each intended to support and strengthen the existing community health nurse-led model of care rather than replace it by making better, more integrated use of other care providers and building a more consistent and resilient delivery system of care.
The first two recommendations focus on how licensed practical nurses and paramedics can become a part of the care model in small communities. This review will include a comprehensive examination of how they are currently used, funded, trained and supported within the system.
The third recommendation involves identifying programs and services that licensed practical nurses and paramedics can immediately support and whether additional training can safely expand their roles and enhance service delivery.
Fourth, the Department of Health and Social Services is creating new standards to oversee the administrative functions of health centres and health cabins. This will ensure compliance with legislative requirements and support consistent care across communities while including ways to monitor and track progress.
The final recommendation is to continue to recruit and, importantly, to retain community health nurses by identifying, implementing, and supporting fatigue-reduction strategies.
Mr. Speaker, the department and the three health authorities have developed a work plan to act on these recommendations. Improving the model of care takes time and requires careful planning. It is essential that any solution we provide are flexible, adaptable and, above all, sustainable. While this work is not formally a part of primary health care reform, it is closely aligned. Together, these initiatives will improve access to health care across the Northwest Territories ensuring Northerners receive consistent high-quality health and social services.
Mr. Speaker, before I conclude, I want to take a moment to sincerely acknowledge and thank our dedicated frontline staff. Their commitment, resilience, and compassion are the foundation of our health and social services system. Every day, they rise to the challenge, often in difficult and demanding circumstances, to provide essential care to residents across the Northwest Territories. This work is not only about improving the system; it's about supporting the people who make it work. By strengthening the model of care, we are also ensuring that our frontline teams have the tools, resources, and support they need to continue delivering high-quality care to every community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
