Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, Mr. Bell is right. We do need to plan for the inevitability of the growing, aging population we will have here in the Northwest Territories. Certainly a part of that planning needs to address how we will take care of people in the last parts of their lives.

We do have a variety of competency and specialized training available in the different areas in the North for people that require palliative care. We do have some expertise which is held by homecare nurses. The needs of a person certainly vary with their illness and with the desire of the individual person as well.

Certainly, for those who do require hospitalization and choose that option and want that, we do need to have the facilities available for them. When we look across the various regions in the different boards, in Stanton for example, the regional health board, we have 50 nurses who have extra training and education in palliative care and one physician who has formal training. Others have taken courses and workshops.

As we go through each of the regions and communities, there are varying levels of expertise available to deal with palliative care issues. However, like I said, the needs vary from person to person and the wishes of the patient vary from individual to individual as well.

Yes, the Member raises a good point and the department will need to undertake planning, not only for palliative care, but certainly for delivery of other services as well for our population as it ages for long-term care in many instances. Homecare, when possible, is a viable solution depending on the circumstances, for elderly or also just for people who are sick. Not everybody that gets sick and requires palliative care is elderly either, unfortunately.

I do recognize that there are no developments in this area all the time and we do need to keep on top of them to make sure that our residents have access to the latest information and services that are out there. Thank you.