Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Later today at the appropriate time, I will be tabling the latest status report on the Health and Social Services System Action Plan which was initiated a year-and-a-half ago. However, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the steps taken to complete and support the actions identified in the plan.

To ensure that services and supports are available where and when they are needed, we must have a strong, stable workforce. For this reason, the recruitment and retention of frontline workers has been, and will continue to be, the top priority of the department and authorities. Through the action plan and related initiatives, steps have been taken to support our health and social services professionals.

As Members will recall, Mr. Speaker, through the interim health profession plan, $8.2 million was invested to create 42 new positions, including 24 nursing positions and 13 physician positions. These were key to improving community health services while also addressing workload issues for frontline professionals.

The plan represented a turning point for two new professions in our system, as resources were identified to introduce three nurse practitioner positions and two midwife positions. We have also taken complementary steps in our legislation to strengthen and formalize the roles of nurse practitioners and midwives in our health care system. The Nursing Profession Act, approved in this House a few months ago, paves the way for nurse practitioners to practice in the NWT. The Midwifery Profession Act will hopefully be enacted during this session of the Legislative Assembly. The introduction of these professions will improve primary care by expanding the scope of services available at the community level.

Another important element of the action plan is the mental health and addictions strategy. Through this strategy 16 new positions have been added in the communities and regions to provide increased counselling and clinical supervision. In addition, funding is available to upgrade the salaries of existing workers.

Also, Mr. Speaker, a recruitment and retention plan was developed for allied health care professionals, nurses and social workers. This plan guarantees professional development opportunities for our current workforce, provides consistency in how we financially compensate professionals for their experience, and encourages NWT students to return to the NWT following graduation.

We have also responded to the need to offer competitive compensation to frontline workers, particularly those professions that are experiencing shortages or are hard to fill. We have been able to offer very competitive contracts to the physician workforce and the government is undertaking a major review of all nursing and allied health worker job classifications to ensure fair and equitable compensation for these professions. Also, Mr. Speaker, we are nearing completion of a comprehensive human resource plan for the health and social services system.

The pressures of national and international shortages in the health professions will continue to exert pressures on our workforce. That is why we will sustain and look for new ways to stabilize and develop our workforce; it is why our workforce will continue to be our number one priority.

Mr. Speaker, we have also taken steps to improve how our network of services and facilities work. The development of an integrated service delivery model that describes the types of services we provide and how we provide them will define professions, shape staffing models, identify staffing requirements, and establish a common vision and philosophy of service delivery among all who work in our system.

Closely linked to this work is the development of a collaborative service networks between the various service providers. We recognize that not all services can be provided in all communities, so these agreements between facilities and service providers ensure all residents have access to more specialized services.

As Members of this House know, board trustees are the voices of the communities and regions. To provide support to the health and social services authorities, programs have been developed to provide orientation to new trustees. Mr. Speaker, we have made alignments in the organizational structure of the system to improve service delivery to residents, including the recent announcement of the establishment of the new Sahtu Health and Social Services Authority.

Mr. Speaker, 36 of the 45 items identified in the action plan have been completed, and in about six months' time, the developmental work of the remaining nine items will be completed. It was recognized at the outset that this plan was ambition but the tasks were kept at the top of the priority list, and the commitment was kept to provide updates to this House as well as to the public through status reports every six months.

The progress to date represents the collective efforts of frontline workers, professional associations, communities, board trustees and Members of this House. Steps have been made in building a system of services and supports that is stable, accessible and of the highest quality, and a foundation has been provided to the next government to management the change and challenges ahead. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause