Mr.
Chairman, I think the
discussion here is veering a little bit into the overall housing needs for seniors and the different spectrum of needs for seniors; it is one I have not really had a chance to look at closely. I will make the commitment to the Minister that I will be talking to the Minister of Housing and looking at some of the profiles of communities.
I do agree there is a lot that Health and Social Services can do to work with Housing. I was just in Fort Resolution, for example, where they built independent units for seniors. The only way — and a better way — for the seniors to live in those units is to increase the home care support. We understand there are lots of seniors who need a little bit of help to live independently with some help with home care. But they don’t necessarily have to be in 24-7 care, and that is in line with a bigger and long-term objective we have as a department. I look forward to having more discussions on that and looking across the territory — an all-community profile — and seeing how we can best meet the needs of seniors.