I have to go back to the opening principle of this budget, which is we do not have a whole lot of new initiatives. So we do not have anything new, I don’t think, than what was there before.

Having said that, the Dehcho Health and Social Services Authority is working on a traditional healing project. We are looking to see what... It’s a study on how to apply some of the traditional practices into modern medicine. It’s not to replace modern medicine but to make more traditional healing practices compatible to modern medicine. We expect that will be done shortly and we need to look for ways to apply that across the other authorities. It’s something I’ve been speaking on with the Joint Leadership Committee and the other chairs. We have different projects going on. We have traditional healing work going on in the Deh Cho and then we have some of the child protection work that are more sensitive to Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal practices in the Tlicho that we want to share across the board. That’s where we are with that topic. But it will require some investments, as well, to apply that across the board.

Again this is a stated objective of the department, so I’m assuming there is an intent to work in this area. There are some things happening, obviously, which I’m happy to hear about. If there’s a plan in place, I think we can usually make better progress. I think experience has shown with a good plan in place than without one in place. I’m just raising that issue. I’ll leave it at that.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. No question, more of a comment. Would the Minister like to make a response?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would not disagree with that. I just want to note that Foundation for Change action plan has a number of priorities and objectives. It’s a three-year plan and there are some areas where we are able to fund it,

but we have made it clear from the beginning that those are planned, those are what we want to do, subject to finding resources.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. We are on page 8-29. Next on my list for page 8-29 is Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’m not asking to go back, but I will provide some explanation on page 8-28. It explains what the programs are that enable individuals with special living requirements to stay in their homes, yada yada yada. I’m just curious specifically on page 8-29 how much is attributed to that specific budget line item. How is that further broken out?

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Could we get the Member to restate that question? Page 8-29 and he was talking about persons needing assistance to live at home? I’m not sure; if he could give us more information, we could answer that.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. For clarity, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you. Pointing to page 8-28, the last bullet. Programs to enable individuals with special living requirements, yada yada yada.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Ms. Lee, he’s asking for a financial breakdown for that bullet, I believe.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That speaks to various programs that we have within the department which is funded to authorities to assist our residents who need special support. In Yellowknife we deliver that program through Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority who funds to YACL and YWCA and other homes and facilities. Is the Member asking for a specific dollar amount for that or is that program criteria that he’s looking for?

I’m looking for the program funding. So in other words, the dollar amount. If the dollar amount, how is that particularly... How would that line item be broken out? It’s easy to say $5 million, but what does that actually interpret? Does it break off from there into further programming? Thank you.

That program is broken into different authorities and different programs. We will have to undertake to get that. We don’t have specific amounts that attach to that bullet. That bullet is a statement of programs and services we do provide. Thank you.

I’ll take the commitment on providing the breakout of how that statement is met through funding and how that’s budgeted under what titles. Thank you.

Thank you. We will get it to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Lee. We’re on 8-29. Next on my list, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Try as I might, I was going to try to stretch things out a little bit and get some questions in on 29, but I’m going to seek unanimous consent of committee to go back to 8-21 just for a few seconds. Thank you.

The Member would like to return to page 8-21. Does committee agree?

Okay. We’ll go back to page 8-21. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just wanted to follow up with some of the questions my colleague Mr. Bromley had and I know Mr. Abernethy had earlier during this session. It gets back to graduating nurses and the possibility of them gaining employment in some of our smaller communities where services are desperately needed. I just wanted to get some assurances from the Minister that the Community Health Nursing Program is going to be maintained. The reason I say so is because in letters that graduating students this year in the Northern Nursing Program... They received a letter in January indicating that funding was available for the Grad Placement Program for 2011 but it didn’t say anything about future years. Also, if you look at the academic calendar for Aurora College, there’s no indication that the Community Health Nursing Program is going to be run in 2011-12. I just want to get some assurances from the Minister today that that program will actually, in fact, be run, and how are we going to get some of the northern nursing grad students into that program and out into the communities working in the small communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Minister Lee.

Thank you. I’m going to invite my deputy minister to add details, if she feels they’re needed.

I think we’re mixing up a whole bunch of programs here. First of all, I want to say, because I received an e-mail from a student who was I think offended, maybe she was, that I was suggesting... She thought that I was suggesting that a graduate out of a Nursing Program from Aurora College is not ready to be a nurse. That’s not in any way what I meant. I think what we’re talking about is being practice ready. In any profession, whether you’re an engineer, lawyer, doctor, nurse or whatever, you learn certain things from school, but the practice at the community level or a hospital setting or public health or home care are a little different and we

need to make sure that we support them through that. Of course, the nurses that graduate out of Aurora College are qualified to be a nurse. There is no question about that.

We facilitate our nursing grads through a Graduate Employment Program and our government is committed to facilitate them so that we recruit and retain as many of those grads to work in our communities in the North as much as possible. They’re going to be asked to give a preference of communities but they may not get to work exactly where they had asked for. But we are committed to hiring them anywhere in the Northwest Territories.

Community nurses, CHN is one program, but if given the right support and resources and mentoring we may be able to accommodate new grads into different authorities. That’s just everyday work that the department is engaged in.

The other thing we should keep in mind is that what Aurora College provides has to be in line with what the health care system needs. We provide funding to HR and ECE to deliver these programs, but I think it is totally acceptable and expected that we review these programs to make sure that people we train are in line with what jobs are required. As I said earlier, the Foundation for Change action plan has a vision for more home care workers and home support workers and resident aide workers. Those are really good community-based jobs and counselling programs. There are lots of human resource needs that we need to marry up between the Department of Health and Social Services and Aurora College.

We’re also aware that in the next three years we’re going to be graduating about 70 to 80 nurses. I think it’s reasonable to think that maybe we have tapped off on the number of nurses that we can hire and then we need to look at other programming. We’re saying, my deputy minister and Education and Aurora College, we’re going to review all of our training programs and see where, not all, but the programs that we are providing with our own money and make sure that we’re training the people we need.

I’m sorry for the long answer but I think it is important. We are looking at all aspects and we are committed to funding to 2012 and we need to work on where go from here with those training programs. Thank you.