Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I'd like to speak in support of the creation of a full-day, every-day-during-the-week drop-in clinic in Yellowknife staffed by nurse practitioners, doctors and other health care professionals, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we know that a local doctor in Yellowknife had already started this last year or a couple of years back at the Centre for Northern Families with great success. I believe it is time for the government to support expanding this.
Mr. Speaker, just last week I received a call from a constituent with young children with special medical needs who had to wait for three hours at the emergency unit when she missed her doctor's appointment by three minutes. The same mother also had to deal with her daughter who developed white spots in her mouth. She couldn't get an appointment for a whole week and when she called Telehealth, she got really good information about a medication that she could use. Excited, she went over to the drugstore and then found out she needed a prescription to get this medication, a very simple one, which sent her back to the doctor's office or have her line up at the emergency for another three years. Three hours.
---Laughter
Mr. Speaker, certainly I believe that there is a better way to look after the needs of mothers and their children that lessens the demand on the doctors we have and lessen the line-up at the doctor's office, as well as putting less pressure on the emergency unit. I know yesterday the Minister had indicated that he is looking at setting up a health clinic, re-profiling the emergency unit, as well as the possibility of consolidating the clinics. My concern though, Mr. Speaker, is that all this must be going on in his head because we're not hearing of any public discussions. We don't have a board at Stanton. I think it's time that the Minister tells us what he has in plan. Obviously he has lots in the works. The demands are there. I want to know if he's talking to the professionals to get their buy-in. I will be pursuing questions during question period with the Minister. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause