Iqaluit MLA raises concerns about safety of Nunavut elders’ apartments

An Iqaluit MLA is asking whether enough is being done to ensure safety and security in Nunavut’s public housing apartments designated for elders.

Often elders end up with additional family members living with them in their apartments, Pat Angnakak, MLA for Iqaluit-Niaqunnguu, told the legislature on Wednesday, Nov. 4, during a day largely devoted to discussion about elders.

“Not only do elders feel responsible for the individuals who end up living there due to the lack of housing options elsewhere, but there are also concerns for their personal security and safety,” Angnakak said.

The Nunavut Housing Corp. plans to build new public housing units in 18 communities that will be ready in October 2022.

Local housing organizations, such as the Iqaluit Housing Authority, also have the option of making some of these into elder-friendly units. Eight of these designated units are slated for Iqaluit.

These units will be designed with accessibility in mind, with easy-to-reach countertops, light switches and sinks.

But security is an issue for Angnakak.

There have been a number of occasions where elder units have been broken into and personal possessions were stolen, Angnakak said.

“The residents end up feeling more vulnerable than ever,” she said.

In 2017, an elder living in a row of elders’ apartments in Iqaluit was admitted to hospital with serious injuries to her face and head after she was attacked while she slept. In a separate incident, another elder living there later reported to the Iqaluit RCMP that she had had electronics stolen.

The incidents provoked outrage from some Iqaluit residents, who called on the Iqaluit Housing Authority, which manages the units, to provide better security for elders.

Angnakak asked Premier Joe Savikataaq, who is also the acting minister for the Nunavut Housing Corp., if providing services for the protection and safety of elderly residents could be part of the plan to build the elders apartments.

But Savikataaq said that, to the best to his knowledge, “we’re not looking at providing security to elders’ facilities.”

Angnakak also wanted to know about the possibility of tracking people who live in elders’ units.

“In many cases there are far more family members in an elder’s unit than there are bedrooms. Elders feel that they don’t have a choice in allowing people to stay as they certainly don’t want to throw a family member out on the streets,” Angnakak said.

“Can the minister clarify whether there is any kind of monitoring of who actually resides in these dedicated elder units and what supports are provided to address situations of overcrowding or to rehouse family members who are not eligible to stay in these units?”

But Savikataaq said the NHC does not track who lives in what house.

“If it’s an elder living in this house, I don’t believe we track as to who lives with this elder,” he said.

On Thursday, Nov. 5, several MLAs also brought up their communities’ desires for local elders’ facilities.

Arviat North–Whale Cove MLA John Main read a list of various ways in which the Nunavut government could provide more support for elders and their caregivers.

He proposed that the government be more flexible with its plans for elder-care facilities, and that it consider entering into service contracts with groups willing to take on local elder care.

Health Minister George Hickes said the Government of Nunavut’s current plan is build three territorial facilities: a 24-bed facility in the Kivalliq region, a 24-bed facility in the Kitikmeot region and a 48-bed facility in Iqaluit.