EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
I’m pretty sure, if memory serves me correct, and if I am incorrect I hope that the minister or her officials will correct it, but that initial contract to supply 100 nurses, the initial date on that has passed.
And, the full amount of the contract was paid out.
I’m just saying, this common practice that the Department of Health and Social Services will prepay...why did they pay out that extra $200,000 for 60 nurses that we didn’t get?
I have asked Trillium to evaluate its international recruitment efforts, to evaluate how we are doing, where we can improve. We have currently approximately 40 international nurses that are in Nunavut that are in a process of writing their exams and so on.
Before we go forward with additional international recruitment efforts, I want that process evaluated. Until such time, we are satisfied that we can continue with that process. I also asked Trillium to do the recruitment efforts for Canada and the amounts of nurses as per the clause that are still in place.
The amount has not changed, the contract with Trillium is for a hundred nurses and it will remain at a hundred nurses. They all currently, as it stands right now, are recruiting within Canada with the financial resources that have been paid to them. They are continuing with that effort.
At the same time in this House, the member himself has raised that we should be recruiting more within Canada, so that is part of that initiative.
We have a number of ads within Nunavut to fill the positions on an indeterminate basis. So there are a number of methods or initiatives underway to recruit the nurses.
In terms of the contracts, data are assigned to the terms and arrangements with Trillium are still in effect until they meet the one hundred nurses requirement as per the contract.
Question 288 – 2(3): Update on Nunavut Housing Corporation Plans on Construction of Houses (Peterson)
Mr. Speaker, recently the federal government announced that in their government budget, $200 million for Nunavut Housing.
Mr. Speaker, this amounts to perhaps 800 housing units in Nunavut with an average cost of $250,000 per unit. I think we need 3,600 houses.
My question for the minister: can the minister update the House on the Nunavut Housing Corporation plans?
Does he plan to construct housing units in Nunavut in the current fiscal year? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Minister of Nunavut Housing Corporation, Mr. Akesuk.
We are going to order the sealift this summer, perhaps enough materials for 100 units.
We are trying to build units in each of the communities this year and the following year.
Mr. Peterson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the minister for that answer.
I am not clear of the minister’s answer. He said that they’re planning to build houses in each community.
My next question for the minister is: has the Housing Corporation made any specific decisions about which communities will be allocated for housing units from the $200 million to meet the sealift shipping season?
If so, will Cambridge Bay receive any units?
Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. Akesuk.
Yes, we are planning to build units in the first year in every community. From there, we will have to decide how we are going to deliver the rest of the houses.
For this year, we are trying to build five-plexes in some communities. There will be duplexes in maybe three other communities. We are doing our very best to make sure that we build houses for each and every community on this first sealift.
We are going to work very closely with the Department of Education, Department of Economic Development and Transportation and Housing to come up with ideas so we could benefit more towards communities with this $200 million.
I am sure that all the communities would appreciate additional housing.
Mr. Speaker, some communities are higher priorities.
Some communities have not had housing delivered to them for several fiscal years. The minister indicated that all communities are going to get housing in this fiscal year. Could the minister describe to the House the allocation model that the Housing Corporation will be using to determine which communities will be receiving houses this and over the next few years.
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Peterson. Minister Akesuk.
Hon. Olayuk Akesuk: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I have directed my staff to conduct consultations with every community and look at how we could deliver this housing better for our people in Nunavut.
We shall go on the needed basis to come up with which communities will need houses from these $200 million. I am still going to push for more money in the upcoming years from the federal government. At this time, we need $1.7 billion in order for us to be at the same national average as other province or territory or Canada as a whole.
It’s important that we benefit from this $200 million as much as possible to the communities that need them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Speaker: You’re very welcome, Mr. Akesuk. Your final supplementary, Mr. Peterson.
I know that it’s difficult with having every community having 50 to 100 people on a housing waiting list. I’m sure the federal government is doing what they can for us in Nunavut.
The average cost to construct a Housing Corporation house it cost $250,000. I think during the last capital estimates we were told that it’s about $330 per square foot to construct a house.
Can the minister shed light on what the portion of this that goes towards the cost of shipping the building materials to Nunavut?
As we know the shipping cost to Nunavut are very high.
I do believe that shipping costs are estimated at about a range of 20 to 40 percent.
Member representing Rankin Inlet North, Mr. Curley.
Question 289 – 2(3): Urgent Need for Registered Nurses in Rankin Inlet (Curley)
My question is directed to the Minister of Health in regard to the statement that I made earlier. In Rankin Inlet, there are a lot of elders who at times need to be treated on an emergency basis and they are working with non-registered nurses.
Can the minister make improvements to our situation as we are in an urgent basis?
Hon. Leona Aglukkaq: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will follow up to see what the statistics are for registered nurses in the Kivalliq. As far as I know, there are 51 nurses overall and that there are a vacancy of four positions of registered nurses using the statistics information that I have as of June 1 of this year.
Normally if there are vacancies, these positions are back filled by casuals or agency nurses. I will commit to providing the member information on the current statistics for Rankin Inlet.
Speaker: (interpretation) Thank you Ms. Aglukkaq. Your first supplementary, Mr. Curley.
In a particular community, they are facing issues with registered nurses. The contribution to that problem may be that there are some vacancies, but we do have four international nurses that do not have the credentials to do the nursing work. So that’s part of the problem.
I spoke to the mayor of the community this morning, and he’s treating this problem as urgent and he now sees that without the support of the minister, it’s not going to be addressed.
So will the minister tell the people of Rankin Inlet that registered nurses are important and that the medical conditions of the elders are important and that she will take immediate action as she did with the accreditation problems with the Iqaluit hospital?
I think any individual who requires medical care is important, whether you’re an elder or a youth that is very important.
To practice nursing, the member is correct that you have to be a registered nurse and you have to have written your exam. No person in Canada can practice nursing unless they are registered.
So yes, we fall under that category, and I commit to the member to looking into that and further supporting our efforts to hiring registered nurses for Nunavut and I will come back to this House and to the member to provide the current statistics for registered nurses in Rankin Inlet and overall for the Kivalliq.
And again, as far as I know, the statistics as of June 1, there were four registered nurses’ positions that were vacant and I will confirm otherwise for the member.
As I stated in my Member’s Statement also, Mr. Speaker, one of the doctors that has been so dedicated not only to the community but to the region as a whole has been given a notice that his contract will not be renewed with only three weeks notice and his last day is June 16.
There are urgent medical needs of that community, this doctor is popular with the elders and the mayor, will the minister speak directly to the Manitoba Northern Medical Unit, stating that we have shortages of doctors in Nunavut and the services of this particular doctor based in Rankin Inlet is urgently needed, will she commit to speak directly with the Manitoba Northern Medical Unit and allow him to stay for an extended time?
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Curley. (interpretation ends) Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Aglukkaq.
I appreciate the member raising the concern and Levinia from Rankin Inlet also raised it this morning, my colleague.
There are some issues that I cannot disclose in the House and I can sit down with the member to speak to the member related this particular file.
Our staff and officials have spoken to the Manitoba Northern Medical Unit around this contract and about this individual.
I will speak to the member privately; I cannot discuss those details in this House as it relates to confidential matters, and I will leave it at that.
Mr. Curley: Mr. Speaker, the concerns and the needs of the individuals with medical needs are not confidential.
These are public needs and their community is facing a very important public requirement that one of the doctors had been given and the information has gone to the council that his last day to provide his service is for June 16 and these services will not be renewed not based on his performance as a doctor.
So in that regard, will the minister make a promise to the community of Rankin Inlet and those with the medical needs that his services are important and that she will try and convince the Manitoba Northern Medical Unit that this particular doctor should stay in Nunavut?
There were some references made to that but we will allow minister to respond to that question.
Northern Medical Unit is the agency that provides the physician services for the Keewatin and we have spoken with them.
Our staff here, the head of the physician services have spoken to them and the member is correct that medical service is in that process itself is not confidential. What is confidential, that I am not prepared to discuss in the house is it relates to the physician himself.
Again, I can speak to the member himself, and there are two sides to every story, and I think it is important that the information that has been shared with me relates to concerns expressed by the Northern Medical Unit Services. So I will speak to the member in private on this file and take it from there.
Question 290 – 2(3): Improvement of Flight Services to the Smaller Communities (Evyagotailak)
I would like to ask a question to the Minister of Economic Development and Transportation.
Last meeting I raised a question regarding to a scheduled flight to Kugluktuk. In Kugluktuk my constituents has raised questions. There is only one airline coming into Kugluktuk as a scheduled flight.
The Government of Nunavut recently introduced a Fuel Tax Rebate Program to encourage more mining companies to come here to Nunavut. Mr. Speaker, what is the minister doing to work with the airlines to improve services to the smaller communities in Nunavut?
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Evyagotailak.
Minister of Economic Development, Mr. Akesuk.
As I said during the midterm review we are working on our Transportation Strategy, and we want to make sure that we do this properly and respect each and every community, how we could have more different airlines coming to the communities.
It is not fair for our people in Nunavut to have one airline servicing the communities. I think it is fair that they respect how the competition will help out one of the causes of the transportation.
So we are doing our very best and respecting all the communities in Nunavut how we could work more closely with the airlines that service Nunavut.
Your first supplementary, Mr. Evyagotailak.
Yes we all know that when there is only one airline service in the communities, the smaller communities, the cost of food goes to the communities, this is very high.
Mr. Speaker, I believe that the Government of Nunavut has been working on updating its Air Services Strategy.
Can the minister update us today on what his department is doing?
With very limited airlines that service our territory, I think it is important that we look into other ways how we could better serve people in Nunavut, on the airlines. Again, it is the airlines that really controls where they are going to fly. So we are trying to work very closely with them to come up with ideas how they could better serve our communities in Nunavut.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Minister. Thank you, Mr. Evyagotailak.
Question 291 – 2(3): Medical Travel Escort Policy (Barnabas)
Again, we have a problem in regard to medical escorts that are provided for patients who are coming into the capital or going to Southern institutions.
We have a problem with patients leaving on an emergency basis without an escort.
It is very obvious that the policy has to be changed because of the problems it creates at the community level and especially for the Elders and people who require this kind of assistance.
Could the minister indicate to the House if the escort policy can be changed so that there are escorts provided for patients?
On Friday I mentioned that I would be providing an updated Medical Travel Policy that will address issue such as escorts, to this House.
The current medical travel policy as it is, I think, is not the issue that is in question. Where we come into concerns and questions is around the whole escort interpretation of when an escort can be provided and when it can’t be.
So I had committed to the House on Friday that I would share this information within the next month or so to my colleagues.
As you probably know, the Tammaativvik Boarding Home is full all the time, and we are having problems with patients who cannot go home on the day that they are supposed to.
(interpretation ends) What kind of assistance is expected from individuals who are traveling as escorts?
The minister made an assurance to the House on Friday, but I’ll give her another opportunity to respond.
Again, that would depend on the patient’s needs. The person that is traveling maybe require assistance to getting in and out of the aircraft, or picking up their luggage, or does not speak English, or requires medical documents to be signed by an adult in the family.
So, again, it depends on the patient’s needs, which is why the issue around escorts has been one that has been causing some confusion. At the same time, there are some disagreements as to when an escort should come or not come.
I’ll give you one example. If a 16 year old girl travels down to a medical facility to have a child, the 16 year old would require an escort because that 16 year old can not sign the medical forms and is still considered a child. So, in that case the person would have an escort.
In other cases the people may be disabled and require assistance to get from A to B, and so on.
So, the situation differs. Based on the patient needs, the role of the escort would differ.
During this month especially, there have been a number of emergency cases where they had to go see a specialized doctor and they didn’t have an escort.
(interpretation ends) It is my understanding that after an individual has finished receiving medical care for treatment at the Southern hospital; they have to call the medical office to make arrangements to go home.
Can the minister confirm this to the House, to explain how medical clients travelling to Southern jurisdictions make arrangements to return and especially how an elder without an escort is expected to do this?
From what I understand, when the person’s appointments are done, the person is staying at the boarding home, who then notifies the travel coordinator to book the airline.
There are translation services available through those agencies. So, the individual would then just notify the boarding home folks, or the individuals that are providing the coordinating for the medical appointment in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Yellowknife, and Edmonton and so on.
At the same time, the office here is notified for the Baffin Region. So there are a number of different people involved, not only just the travel piece; but also the medical appointment piece.
There is a lot of coordinating involved in getting a patient from A to B. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Will the minister commit to closer reviewing the medical travel policy as it relates to providing escorts for elders and people with disabilities and updating the members of this House of any proposed changes to the policy and its implementation as earliest possible opportunity?
Yes, I’ve committed to that, and I will again state that within the next month I hope to prepare or have one prepared to share with my colleagues.
At the same time, I would encourage my colleagues to continue to forward their concerns around the policy itself. The policy we’re trying to develop in such a way that it’s quite broad, at the same time that it allows for family input in deciding when an escort or if an escort is required, at the same time, a patient’s input into the process.
So, I welcome suggestions from members on how we can better improve that part of the medical travel policy.
And thank you Mr. Barnabas.
Question 292 – 2(3): Update on the Construction of Breakwaters (Arreak)
Just recently we had heard an announcement from the Department of Transportation that they are now working on safe harbors for Clyde River, Pond Inlet, Qikiqtarjuaq, and to other communities.
What is the progress on that?
Minister responsible for Transportation, Minister Akesuk.
We are now working on this at this time.
When we were in Ottawa I met with Minister Hearn regarding safe harbours or small craft harbours.
We’re now discussing these and I was told that our officials are going to work harder to make sure that this occurs in an earlier stage. So, we would like to deal with this issue right away.
I would like to thank the minister too for his response.
I’m very glad that you will be working on this file. My next question is when do you expect to start construction?
Hon. Olayuk Akesuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the upcoming months we are going to have discussion as to when the funding can be made available by the federal government, because it is going to get more expensive annually due to the increased cost of living. So we asked them to work on this right away.
It is approximately going to cost about $48 million to work on the breakwaters.
So approximately next year we’ll know when they can start the construction once the funding is made available from the federal government.
Do we expect to see any breakwaters constructed this summer?
Speaker (interpretation): Mr. Arreak, thank you.
I don’t think we are going to construct anything this summer but, as I stated before, that once the funding is made available from the federal government then we can start working on it.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Minister. And also thank you.
Question 293 – 2(3): Health Coverage for Students Outside Nunavut (Tootoo)
Again my question is for the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.
I asked this question three months ago; I asked a question Friday for the minister of students being covered for health benefits when they’re outside the territory.
Reviewing the Hansard from Friday, the minister indicated that individuals that move from province to province are covered for three months. It doesn’t matter if you’re a student or not. They’re covered for three months.
During that time you are to apply to the jurisdiction that you moved into to be covered for medical coverage.
For the minister’s benefit I tabled some information on Friday as well. I’d just like to ask her if she stands by that comment, or has she now learned that things are done differently?
The Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Ms. Aglukkaq.
I think on Friday there were a couple of questions. In March the question related to medical services was around people traveling to different jurisdictions for medical reason, and whether they’re covered.
I wanted to clarify this because in March’s Hansard, I went through that on Friday, were quite different from the questions on Friday.
The questions on Friday were around whether students were covered.
One distinction that I tried to make during those discussions, based on the documents before me and related to residency and the document the member tabled.
I think it’s important to recognize that under the Non-insured Health Benefits Program for Inuit and aboriginal people, that coverage is applicable to you, no matter what province that you live in.
When you are non-aboriginal what you do is before you leave, as per this document, that you have to notify the Northern Healthcare Plan in writing on an annual basis before you go to school. This will ensure that your insurance coverage is transferable to that particular province, or jurisdiction.
However, if you move on your own basis, whether you’ve moved as a student, or you’re relocating for a job, and so on, you should again notify the province or territory that you apply to for that medical service. Normally, in those cases, it’ll take three months to transfer that medical insurance plan; that’s the three months here that I made reference to.
At the same time not everybody files, or applies, then that’s a catch up factor.
A person in any province is always covered by medical insurance and the whole reason behind the transfer portion is actually who pays for the bill.
And that’s our method of following which jurisdiction covers the cost, which is why you need to apply or notify which jurisdiction that you’re going to.
As a student, you’re a Nunavut resident and that’s covered under that. As an aboriginal person, you’re continually covered under the Non-Insured Health Benefit Program no matter what province or territory you live in.
I would like to refresh the minister’s memory. The questioning that you referred to back in March did refer to health and education purposes, and I’ll quote the Hansard from March 14.
I asked the minister then, where individuals move, whether they are moving for temporary purposes, whether it be for education, education’s in there, so it’s not just health, or whether it be for health reasons, are those individuals not still covered for health purposes, a resident of Nunavut?
That’s what I’m referring to, Mr. Speaker.
The minister I believe has misinformed the Members of this House and has misinformed the public out there as far as the forms that they fill out for their kids to be covered for health purposes by Nunavut under Nunavut healthcare when they’re attending school in a university or college in the south.
So Mr. Speaker, I think it’s very important that we set the record straight and it’s important that the right information gets out there for these parents; they want to know: are their children covered under the Nunavut Healthcare Plan?
For all members, I remind you that your Oral Questions are responded to with the words that are used at the time of the questioning.
So in fairness to all members and the public at large, I ask that you be clear both in your questions and responses to the questions being asked of you.
I have not misinformed the public, I have not done that.
I’m going to read a question from March 14, “In cases where individuals have to leave the territory to obtain medical services, how does the department look at residency in cases like that?”
That was your first question.
The second question is, “For individuals that leave the territory for medical purposes because of services not being offered in Nunavut, and they require those services, how does the department determine residency...?”