Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

I’ll take the Minister on that commitment. Could the Minister further commit to having that done within the next few weeks? It’s only a simple line.

I’ll commit to having it done before the end of session.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister of Health, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The current contract the authority has with Sodexo is a five-year contract for dietary, housekeeping and laundry services. The total cost of the contract is $2.3 million. Our studies indicate that by doing it in-house we’re looking at probably about $700,000 more than we are spending on the contract.

I think these are some of the issues that need to be fleshed out. They need to be discussed, whether it’s in a public forum or back and forth between the Minister and me — or maybe the Social Programs Committee should get involved in this. But, Mr. Speaker, of that $2.3 million a year, I think a good portion probably heads straight south. Like I said, Sodexo’s a multinational corporation, and they must take a good percentage of that $2.3 million per year with them.

I’d like to ask the Minister: the public administrator who has been brought in to look at the operational

management areas at Stanton — is this going to be an area they will concern themselves with?

I have to state that while the latest topics of discussion are with respect to the deficit situation, I think it’s more correct to say we are looking at all aspects of the operation. We are looking at transformational changes needed, not only to deal with the deficit situation. It is an organization under stress, and I think we need to look at all the programs — they do run 53 programs. We need to look at them all and see how they’re doing, if we can do better, what things need to be changed.

I want to advise the Member and the public out there that whatever we do will be a completely public process. I think it’s an important institution and a hospital for all of the territory, and we should all be a part of moving forward on what changes are to take place.

Mr. Speaker, I didn’t really hear the Minister say whether or not the public administrator would be looking at this. I believe not, but I’d like to ask the Minister if she would entertain having a full cost-benefit analysis done on those functions at Stanton Territorial Hospital — I’m talking laundry, housekeeping and food services — so we can find out if, indeed, we can spend that money more wisely. And if it is a little bit more money and it’s going to go into our local economy, that’s something we need to have that discussion, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister commit to doing something like that?

Mr. Speaker, in fact, the public administrator is engaged in the review of all 53 programs. That includes a cost-benefit analysis, but also the mandate given to the 53 programs: whether the Stanton Hospital, as it is, should be delivering all the programs it is; whether some of them could be moved elsewhere; whether some of the privatization should be moved in or out. I think those are all broad questions we need to look at, and we are looking at. The public administrator certainly has the mandate to look at all that. It will be something I will work on with the Members on the other side as well.

Thank you, Ms.

Lee. Final

supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To my knowledge, there is no requirement by Sodexo to hire northern people for these positions. I’d like to ask the Minister if she knows how much of that $2.3 million per year on those contracts actually stays in the North.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t have that information on hand. It is a private contractor. I will be happy to enquire as to whether we could get

information on how many employees they have, where they live, and such.

Thank you, Minister. The Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Health and Social Services. It is in regard to the quality of health care services being provided out of the Inuvik Hospital, and the deficit situation they find themselves in.

Speaking as the Member for Mackenzie Delta, each community has a lot of money designated for community expenses for health and social services, yet services continue to be taken away from communities, moved to Inuvik and then, basically, administered out of Inuvik. They fly people into the community, put them up in a hotel for a week and then fly them back.

Mr. Speaker, the Inuvik health board has a major deficit year after year after year, and yet nothing seems to be done about it. With regard to Stanton Hospital, you basically have a caretaker administrator put in place; they go in there and they basically micro-manage the thing to death. I’d like to know why you aren’t doing that in the case of the Inuvik Hospital.

The honourable Minister of Health, Ms. Lee.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, we do have a governing body, a governing board, in the Beaufort-Delta Regional Health Authority. We do have a deficit situation there, but it is not as severe as Stanton, obviously.

I would like to advise the Member that the deficit-recovery plan for Stanton will be in a package that speaks to all authorities, Mr.

Speaker, when it

comes forward in this House.

Mr. Speaker, I have to disagree with the Minister on that one. When basic programs and services aren’t being delivered in communities — such as the mental health, the alcohol and drug, and nurses — or even the doctor’s visit or dental care, for that matter, is now not being offered like it should be, I think we have a problem.

I would like to ask the Minister: exactly why is it that we are having such a major problem delivering basic services in communities, but it doesn’t seem to be a problem in the larger centres where a lot of these decisions are being made? I’d like to ask the Minister: exactly what is your department doing to ensure that basic programs and services are being

delivered in communities that are recognized under the Canada Health Act?

Mr. Speaker, I’d like to advise the Member that I, as the Minister, am completely committed to working really hard to maximize the opportunities for services to be rendered in the communities.

As much as possible, we would like our community people to have the jobs that are available and to take on the health and social services activity. As we know, that is not always possible, and we have been challenged in recruiting and retaining physicians and some of our other health and social services workers. We will continue to work on that.

I am looking at different models, and I am hoping that, for the next business plan process, I will have some concrete options for the Members to consider in that regard.

I believe the big problem you have in Inuvik office is with management. You have people in place who don’t have a management background to manage a hospital. You’ve got people there with, basically, backgrounds in social services who are running a hospital. If you want to be realistic here, that is the problem.

So I’d like to ask the Minister: why are you not taking action, with the depths of the situation in Inuvik Hospital affecting the health and well-being of people in small communities?

Mr. Speaker, as the Minister, I have visited Inuvik region more than any other similar region. I think we should be very proud of some of the management we have in Inuvik.

I know we have had a challenge in Fort McPherson, where the community mental health worker’s position is, at the moment, suspended. We are looking for a local person. We are looking for a project idea from Tl’oondih Healing Society.

I, as the Minister, would like to make a commitment to the Member that I’m totally prepared to work with the Member to work toward having somebody locally to take on that task. I think this is something we need to continue to work on.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final short supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, the problem is not within the community. The problem is at the Inuvik Hospital in regard to running deficits year after year after year. This government is allowing them to get away with it and not doing anything about it. In regard to Stanton hospital, it seems like every time they have a deficit situation, this government moves in with its army, takes over the hospital, and then basically manages it to a

point where they control everything, right from salaries to benefits.

I would like to ask the Minister: why have you allowed this to go on to a state of affairs, in regard to Inuvik region, where it is having an effect on the morality of the employees and on the delivery of community services by the nurses and caregivers in our communities, which is affecting our employees. I would like to ask the Minister: exactly why is it that you are not doing anything, and when will you do something on this matter?