I have a question on page 32.

Thank you, Ms. Green. Any further questions, committee? Seeing none, I will call the page. Health and Social Services, administrative and support services, infrastructure investments, $7,903,000. Does committee agree?

Agreed, thank you. Next, we turn to page 33, information items on page 34, Health and Social Services, community health programs, infrastructure investments. Does committee have any questions? Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, over the last few months, I have been talking about the Stanton building and, not the Stanton building, I guess, but the old Stanton Hospital. I have been asking for the possibility of having a nursing school, homecare, and so on, to training homecare people, all the various positions that are needed to do homecare. I'm wondering if there's any thought at all in the department to consider Stanton Hospital as a school for nurses. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we did discuss it in the department after the Member had raised it a number of months ago. Basically, that building is fully subscribed with long-term care, extended care, the family clinic, other clinics, OT/PT, so there's not a lot of space in there for things like classrooms and other things to run a school. The school and the education programs are ultimately something that is under the responsibility of Education, Culture and Employment, and the nursing program here in the Northwest Territories is an absolutely amazing program.

We are happy to work with the College to facilitate clinical practice and practicums and make sure that their students have an opportunity to get into all of our health facilities, including future health facilities, so that they can consolidate their learning. If we start turning this into a school, we will run quickly short on some of the other areas that we need to provide. We are happy to be a partner. We are happy to bring students in, but we are not in a position to turn this into a school.

Thank you, Minister Abernethy. Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you. Mr. Chair, I'm generally thinking about the same people, basically almost the same people, I suppose, that would provide the care for the long-term patients or extended-care patients as being students as opposed to being a staff. I'm assuming again that, in order to pick up an additional 72 people in long-term care, there would be new staff needed, considering that, I guess, Avens is staffed up and the extended care facility, I guess, is staffed up, and that currently exists. I'm thinking that there's a way where the students would provide the care to long-term care, at the same time getting educated in the field.

If it's filled up with a program and there's going to be hiring needed, I'm saying that's a golden opportunity for them to train individuals that will return back. The whole idea, I mean the federal government is investing in homecare over and above other things that they would just normally invest in because they see the value of it. What I'm saying is this is an opportunity to train long-term care people that are returning back to all 33 communities, including Yellowknife, where I'm sure there are many senior homeowners who would love to remain in their homes. This is an opportunity to provide a service to the seniors all over the North, for the homeowners to extend the life of their unit for something that they can remain in for, you know, even an additional 10 years.

We all know the numbers. I have talked about the numbers so many times, for an additional 10 years with working with the Housing Corporation to make sure that the unit is senior-friendly or barrier-free. This is an opportunity to train those people to go back. It's jobs. It's got a lot of upside to it.

I was wondering if the Minister in turning this over to a long-term care, which I agree with, would again have a discussion with the department to see what's possible and if they need to engage department education, which I think they need to. The Ministers in both have said that it would involve both Ministers. I would like to ask the Ministers if they would take another look at this before, I guess, Maybe when the other hospital is up and running. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we are going to be moving forward with 258 long-term care beds here, in the Northwest Territories, over the next. I think it's the next four or five years which are going to create a significant demand for employees. It's going to be hundreds and hundreds of jobs here, in the Northwest Territories, 60 in Hay River, 60 in Inuvik, probably more here, in Yellowknife, and then more again in Simpson. All of these people are going to be trained. Some of them are going to be RNs; some of them will be resident-care aides; some of them may be admin staff, these types of things; non-statutory jobs. We will be working to hire people and train people on the job where appropriate. There is certainly opportunity for people to come into the healthcare system for non-statutory jobs and get training on the job.

Human resources just got up two different programs. One is a senior management program, and one is more of a development program for more entry. These are opportunities we can use to train local people for local work. I have already told the department I want to see that happen.

When it comes to resident-care aides and nurses, obviously nurses have to go through a program. A program involves classroom time, a learning on non-patients, practice on non-patients, but it always includes clinical practice. It always includes clinical practice. We have been a partner with Education, Culture and Employment and with the college to facilitate clinical placements in all of our facilities throughout the Northwest Territories.

With resident-care aides, it's the same. The program was in Inuvik. I actually had an opportunity to get in there and meet some of the students. It's the same. There has to be a lot of, sort of, up-front training development that's done in a classroom setting so that they can go into the health centres or the long-term care facilities and provide safe support while they are consolidating their learning. We have worked with the school to work on clinical placements.

In my mind, as I believe it is in yours, there is a great opportunity for us to work with the college to do some clinical learning to help provide some of those services. These are students. They aren't necessarily registered professionals, so there are still some, you know, risk or accountability issues we have to make sure we address. We are absolutely going to work with Aurora College, and we are absolutely going to work with Education to facilitate clinical learning within our facilities, including the new long-term care facility when it opens.

Thank you, Minister Abernethy. Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, on the same page, something that isn't there, I know I have had discussions with the Minister on the health centre in Lutselk'e. I know that there are basically four health centres that are close to reaching the end of their useful lives, and two of them have already been replaced. That is Providence and Fort Resolution, and I know it is in the books to replace Tulita.

Lutselk'e, I believe, is next in line for a replacement. I know that they were looking at that as a renovation, but the Minister himself and I have talked and looking at a replacement, but I am afraid that the replacement idea has pushed this project down the road too far. I would like to ask the Minister: what the earliest that the department will be doing any sort of, I guess, maybe we'll call it a planning study for the replacement of Lutselk'e Health Centre? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the Member is correct. When he and I had an opportunity to attend the opening of the Fort Resolution Health and Social Services Centre there, we did talk about that building and how incredible it was, and we both talked about the fact that the building in Lutselk'e was intended to be, not a replacement, but a renovation.

I am not as big a fan of the renovations that we have done over the years, and I think Lutselk'e deserves a facility that is state of the art, so I agreed with the Member. I also got a letter from the community saying that they wanted to see a replacement, not a renovation. So I had to make a decision to take it out of the queue. It is still in the next one in line, but we now have to do a new planning study based on a replacement as opposed to a renovation, because it is a significantly different project. I believe that a replacement is the right way to go, but we need to see the numbers, and we need to see the planning study.

I will, obviously, move it forward in the next cycle, assuming that we get the work done, and I am optimistic that we will get it done. It will have to compete against all capital projects in the Northwest Territories, so we will do our work to forward it in a complete way.

Thank you, Minister Abernethy. Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, that is all I have for this page. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Next, we have Mr. Simpson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The first information item is a long-term care facility in Hay River. The Minister of Finance, when he was introducing this budget, announced that, between Hay River's and Inuvik's, there was quite a bit of money allocated. I would like to know where we can expect that project to be at the end of 2020. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Simpson. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we are committed to getting the 48 beds in Hay River. We have to get the staff out of the old H.H. Williams. I have been pushing the Department of Infrastructure to find a way to get them out of there as quickly as possible, so that the next step can include the teardown of the old H.H. Williams, so that we can begin the process of breaking ground on the long-term care facility in Hay River.

We have also been having conversations with potential partners who have expressed an interest in owning and operating and being a partner in the delivery of a long-term care facility in Hay River. We need to explore that option to make sure that there is good value for money, both for the residents of Hay River, but also the potential provider.

It is a little difficult for me to say exactly where we will be in 2020 because there are a lot of moving pieces on this one, but I would like to see us have ground break within the time allotted on this page.

Thank you, Minister Abernethy. Mr. Simpson.

Thank you. Is the department looking at a privatized care model? Right now, it is the health authority that runs the Woodland Manor in Hay River. The Minister is talking about contracting out this long-term care unit. Can he please elaborate on that? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Simpson. Minister Abernethy.