I will turn to consideration of Bill 36, Health and Social Services Professions Act. I will go to Minister Abernethy. Do you have opening comments?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do.

Go ahead.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to be here to discuss Bill 36, Health and Social Services Professions Act. The Health and Social Services Professions Act is a result of five years of work by the department and reflects significant feedback from professionals as well as the public. This act will provide the foundation for future regulation of health and social services professions in the Northwest Territories.

If passed, this legislation will enable the Government of the Northwest Territories to regulate numerous professions under one legislative framework. This includes modernizing existing and outdated legislation as well as adding newly regulated professions.

The bill includes a process for designation and a list of criteria that will be considered to help government prioritize which professions should be regulated and when. Above all, the proposed act will help ensure the public is protected. Only qualified individuals will be licenced and a complaints

and

discipline

process

will

be

established that is fair, balanced and consistent with best practices in Canada.

The Health and Social Services Professions Act mirrors six other umbrella acts across Canada, making us the seventh jurisdiction to have legislation of this importance. If passed, it will be a great accomplishment for the 17th Legislative

Assembly.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank the members of the Standing Committee on Social Programs, numerous professionals throughout the Northwest

Territories

and

their

significant

contribution to the development of this bill. We look forward to working with you again as we develop profession-specific regulations in the future. I would be pleased to answer any questions that committee may have. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. We’ve already heard from the chair of the Standing Committee on Social Programs. Mr. Minister, do you have witnesses to bring into the Chamber?

I do, Mr. Chair.

Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.

Minister

Abernethy,

please

introduce

your

witnesses, for the record.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. With me today on my right is Lisa Cardinal, director responsible

for

health

and

social

services

professional licensing; and on my left is Thomas Druyan, legislative counsel. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister Abernethy. I will open the floor to general comments. Mr. Dolynny.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I’d like to

welcome the Minister and the department here today. This is a perfect example where government works well and works right and understands the needs of its people. As someone who has practiced in the area of health care most of my adult life in the Northwest Territories, I have had the pleasure of working independently and now as a legislator on a number of acts pertaining to the health profession. So, when I saw this come through, as an MLA I was very impressed and very thankful to be able to put my hands on it as a committee member and work in conjunction with the department to bring forth what I think is an incredible piece of umbrella legislation. Again, I am very pleased to see that we are actually

making history. We are with a very select number of provinces and territories in Canada that have this type of uniqueness and allow a number of different professions and disciplines to finally work under some scrutiny. The public should feel assured and safe knowing the government is taking great care looking at the needs of its citizens.

I just want to say, Mr. Chair, I am very happy with this act. I think it hits all the high notes that we have. I know we have a number of professions in the wings waiting to have regulations drafted around their professions and nature. Far and none, I believe the department will live up to its reputation in working in a very positive way, working with these professions so that, with time, we will see a number of these professions come on board and have the ability to regulate and be legal contributing members to society under, I guess, some form of structure.

Again, I just want to commend the department for a job well done. I appreciate the consultation that took place and I am looking forward to seeing a number of these professions come on line as soon as we can. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Next I have Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This issue, this concern, this opportunity was first raised in the 16th Assembly. I know the Minister will recall that,

as well as my colleagues. Work was started then.

I would also like to add my voice saying job well done. I would like to thank the professions that have also contributed quite a bit, as well, and the heavy lifting that’s done by our legal department and all involved in getting legislation to this point.

I know there are a number of professions that are waiting to be added. I know the public is going to appreciate this regulation of professions so they can have some confidence that standards are being met.

Again, I want to express appreciation to the professions that are out there and are gradually being brought into the fold at their willingness to work towards establishing high standards and maintain them in the Northwest Territories.

Yes, the seventh in Canada. I’m happy to be in that position and moving forward with this, and I look forward to incorporating other professions as we go alon

g. I’ll be supporting the bill. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Next I have on the list Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I also want to lend my support in this important bill, and my colleague Mr. Bromley said it very well that in the 16th we started this work, the Members who are

here and continue on. This is almost two Assemblies now. We have done some good work

under the leadership of the Minister. I appreciate the support and the work that has been done to this date along with the Social Programs committee members on this side here, too, who put this bill here.

Again, as my colleague has said, there are others in the field of the professions who would love to also become part of this whole seventh group of the jurisdiction to do a lot of good work. I saw it in my small

communities

where

there

are

other

professions right now that are not in the deck, but they are being looked at and considered after we get our house in order on this legislation here.

I just want to say, good job, Minister and staff, on this legislation. This is a really good day for us. It’s a really good day for people who will benefit from this profession. There are really good people in the North who are doing some good work. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Next I have on the list Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This was another bill that required a fair amount of work on the part of committee, and it was another bill where we ended up with a better product than what we started with. There was good cooperation from the department and committee both, and some back and forth which allowed us to get to a good place.

I just want to mention a couple of concerns that are raised in the report that are not specifically dealt with in the bill. We had quite a lot of representation from stakeholders at our public hearing and they raised quite a number of issues, which again, like the previous bill, committee considered very carefully. A couple of them are ones which are not going to end up in legislation but they are concerns that the practitioners brought to our attention.

One of them that seems kind of mundane, but it is important that it be mentioned, has to do with the fees that are paid when a profession is registered or when a professional registers under this bill. Of course, there’s a fee that needs to be paid, an annual fee, but I think we have to recognize that many practitioners in the Northwest Territories also register with perhaps another provincial body but certainly with a national body as well. We have to make sure that we keep our fees down to a reasonable amount of money so that we’re not pretty much putting people out of business through the fees that we’re charging them.

The other thing that I want to mention and that I think is extremely important

– it certainly was

important to the stakeholders

– there will be

regulations developed for every profession that ends up being registered. These four that we’re starting with, there will be regulations developed for each one of these four professions. It is imperative, and I believe the department agrees, but it is

imperative that the professionals are involved in the development of regulations. For instance, the emergency medical service providers, when the regulations are developed for their profession, the practitioners of that profession need to be involved in the development of regulations. I think that that is something which the department, I believe, has told us that, yes, that is wh

at they’re going to do, but I

feel the need to state it again.

Lastly, I want to mention that, in discussing with stakeholders about the complaints process, there was a feeling from the stakeholders that any complaints committee needs to have… A majority of members of that committee need to be professionals from that profession. That’s not always possible because we have some very small groups of professionals for some of the professions within the NWT, but where possible, there needs to be a majority on the committee who are practicing professionals of the profession that is being investigated. Again, it seems like kind of a small thing, but they are the ones who know their profession best. They are the ones who can best evaluate any concern that has been brought to the attention of the committee.

It’s understood that there will be times when we have to go outside to get representatives of the profession. I think the Minister mentioned in one of our hearings that one or I think there is a profession that has one or perhaps two practitioners, so there’s absolutely no way we’re going to get a committee of one or a committee of two. They’re going to be investigating themselves. So it is understood that we will sometimes have to go outside. But where we don’t need to, or we have enough numbers, we absolutely have to have territorial practicing professionals be the complaints committees.

I think that’s about all I wanted to say. I’m pleased again that there was enough back and forth with this bill that we have a better product than what we started with. I know it’s been a very long time coming. I’m particularly pleased that the Minister and the department acceded to the pressure from Regular Members and included naturopathic doctors in this first group of four that are going to be regulated. Members felt very strongly that they ought to be included. I’m very glad that the Minister has

done so. I think I’ll leave it at that. Thank you,

Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Minister, did you have any comments?

Not at this time.

Thank you. General comments on the bill.

Is committee agreed we have concluded the general comments on the bill?

We will go clause-by-clause review of the bill. Again, I will go in groups of 10, if that’s agreeable to committee.