Oral questions. Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have another question for the Minister of Health. The Minister of Health indicated today in his Minister's statement that he has established a board of inquiry under the Medical Profession Act. Recognizing that I will not ask for the substance of the matter before the board of inquiry. I would like to ask the Minister of Health whether or not this board of inquiry is now fully constituted? Thank you.

Mr. Patterson.

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Supplementary, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can I ask the Minister to advise the House what criteria he used in deciding which doctors and lay representatives to select the members of the board of inquiry? Thank you.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I should explain that the board of inquiry under the Medical Profession Act, is a body that exists at all times. It was not constituted because of this particular issue in Fort Smith. Members had been appointed and the board of inquiry was in place before this issue arose. It is the kind of body that is there when it is required.

Some action had to be taken, Mr. Speaker, to ensure that all members had up-to-date appointments. As far as I know there were only two members whose appointments needed to be confirmed, or updated, in order to activate this particular board. Dr. Covert was the previous President of the Board of Inquiry, and has been so for some years. His appointment was about to lapse, Mr. Speaker, and therefore it was necessary to re-appoint him in order to get the board fully constituted.

The representative of the N.W.T. Medical Association needed to be appointed. That particular individual for some reason, was no longer able to serve, or the position had lapsed. So I had to wait a period of time to get a nomination from the N.W.T. Medical Association. The other members of the board of inquiry Dr. Fairbairn and Ms. Mary King of Hay River were already in place, and did not have to be re-appointed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Minister, since he indicated that Dr. Fairbairn has been appointed and Ms. Mary King has been appointed and Dr. Covert has been appointed, is the Minister indicating that this board of inquiry comprises of three people the three being Dr. Fairbairn, Dr. Covert and Ms. King? Thank you.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, no, there is a fourth person who is the nominee of the N.W.T. Medical Association. I have appointed Dr. Kallos to represent the position of N.W.T. physicians on the recommendation of the N.W.T. Medical Association. The other members are Dr.

Fairbairn, who is the out-of-territory medical practitioner, Dr. Covert, and Ms. King.

Oral questions. Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Health. In June, the Department of Health came out with a report titled "Health and Health Resources, Fort Simpson and Area Community Profile". In this report the Department of Health has developed six steps in achieving and maintaining the well-being of the residents of Fort Simpson, and surrounding areas within available resources.

This report fulfils step one in that process. Its purpose is to provide a base for joint discussion at which time opportunities for more efficient, and effective service to the Fort Simpson area will be identified.

The second step in this process is just to hold discussion between residents, health practitioners, and the Department of Health. Mr. Speaker, the people in Fort Simpson would like to have these discussions soon.

Also I would like the Minister to confirm who from the community will be involved in these discussions? Will it be just a select few, or will the discussions be of an open nature where anyone concerned will get a chance to be heard? Thank you.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I want to assure the honourable Member that there is no intention to have, I think he called it, a select few people involved and I believe that the first phase of the planning showed that the department did reach out to a large number of community leaders and critical organizations, such as band councils, Metis locals, and local governments to name a few.

Mr. Speaker, I have recently informed the department that it is the desire of the residents of the Member's constituency to keep moving on this important exercise, and to begin the next phase. I have asked them to make it a priority to, again, begin these discussions in the near future. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister what his department's intentions are for the hospital in Fort Simpson, because I stated in the House previously that our intention in Fort Simpson, and that area is to have proper health programs and services for Fort Simpson and the surrounding area, out of the hospital in Fort Simpson. We want to keep that hospital there and we would like to have better equipment. The personnel that work out of the hospital are good personnel at the present time, but we need more services, and we hear quite a few complaints from smaller communities that the service seems to be dwindling down. So I was wondering what is the ultimate purpose of this exercise of these six steps? What is the intention of the department? The Minister should tell us right now exactly what his intentions are. Is it ultimately to use this exercise to do an end run, shut down the hospital and make it into a glorified nursing station? Or is it to upgrade it to the way the people in the communities would like to see this hospital? Thank you.

Two questions. Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I am very concerned that the honourable Member would suggest that there is a predetermined agenda for this health study. I know that residents of the area fear that this review is a justification for closing the hospital. I want to assure the honourable Member that is not in the terms of reference, nor have any conclusions been reached by myself or health officials about what should happen with health services in that region.

Mr. Speaker, the Member asked me to state clearly what the intentions are of the department with respect to the hospital. It is precisely the purpose of this study to gather the necessary data to examine how the hospital is being used, how services are being delivered, what services are being met and what needs are not being met.

Once we have that information, Mr. Speaker, with the full participation of the M.L.A. and community leaders, once we have a profile of the health needs of the region then we will be in a position to do a logical response to that information and I do not know what that response is going to be, Mr. Speaker. I have no idea what it will lead to. I think we have to take one step at a time, get the information, make it as comprehensive as possible, ensure people have ownership of that process, feel that it is legitimate, that the department has an open inquiring mind about the matter and once we have all that information then we will make these kinds of critical decisions.

I am certainly not prepared to make commitments of any kind in the absence of that information having been gathered and assessed. It is premature now to say what the end result is going to be. Why would we do a plan if we already knew what the end result was going to be? Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In June as I mentioned, there was a report that came out called "Health and Health Resources, Fort Simpson and Area Community Profile." At the time when this report came out, a team of health officials travelled to Fort Simpson and met with people representing the region and upon receiving this fairly thick document, they were asked to comment on this document. So it is very difficult to rate a document while you are having a meeting to reply on it. A process was agreed upon that this same team was to travel back to Fort Simpson at the end of August or the early part of September, to get the proper feedback from these people involved in the community and this commitment has not been followed through.

I would like to ask this Minister -- I know he was a previous Minister -- but with this commitment that was made by the health officials, is it going to be honoured and if so when is this going to take place? Thank you.

That is two questions. Mr. Patterson.