Nunavut MLA renews call for Baffin hospital board

Iqaluit-Niaqunnguu MLA Pat Angnakak says a hospital board could get so much done to meet local health care service demands. (FILE PHOTO

Nunavut Health Minister Monica Ell says re-instituting the now-defunct hospital boards is not in the government’s mandate at this time. (FILE PHOTO)

Establishing a management board at Iqaluit’s Qikiqtani General Hospital could reduce bureaucratic backlogs and meet the hospital’s needs in a timely and efficient manner, an MLA told the legislative assembly in Iqaluit last week.

“The wheels of government often turn very slowly,” said Pat Angnakak, Iqaluit-Niaqunnguu MLA, during a member’s statement Oct. 24.

But if, for example, the hospital identified a new piece of equipment it needed, a standalone hospital board could fund-raise and buy specific items as they are needed, Angnakak said.

“All Nunavummiut could benefit from the government having that type of partner in ensuring the delivery of a high-quality health service,” Angnakak said.

A management board would be made up of people “from different walks of life” Angnakak explained, “who bring their expertise, knowledge and businesses savvy to the operation of a critical service.”

During question period in the legislative assembly, Angnakak asked Nunavut’s health minister Monica Ell if her department’s staff had looked into the suggestion, one that she raised publicly several times, including during the legislative assembly’s spring sitting earlier this year.

But persistence, so far, has not paid off.

“The current government mandate does not list a re-examination of health boards as a priority,” Ell replied, “but saying that, we can look at ways on how we can engage with communities and to the public.”

“Would the minister agree that the ability to fund-raise, the reduction of bureaucratic backlog, and having the guidance of a group of qualified and experienced individuals are all good reasons to establish a board of management for the Qikiqtani General Hospital?” Angnakak asked.

“She is asking for an opinion and I can’t really provide an opinion,” Ell replied.

Ell said that since the three regional health boards initially acquired by Nunavut from the Government of the Northwest Territories were dissolved, services have been administered through Nunavut’s department of Health.

“With our staff and officials, we do review and see how we can provide the best service and how we can agree with the communities for engagement,” Ell said.

The GN scrapped the three regional health boards in 2000.

Supporters, including the Nunavut Association of Municipalities, want regional health boards re-established even though the boards were criticized for deficit problems and other controversies.

“Just because something has been done in the past, it doesn’t mean it was the right move,” Angnakak said in the legislative assembly.

“Will the minister commit to addressing the need for the board of management for the Qikiqtani General Hospital?”

“We can look into what you’re saying,” Ell replied, “but I can’t say ahead of time what results we will see.”