Kivalliq patient home in Winnipeg officially opens

QALUIT — Last Wednesday, the new Kivalliq Inuit Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba held its official opening, with Nunavut MP Nancy Karetak-Lindell, and Nunavut Health Minister Ed Picco among the dignitaries present for the centre’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The 40-room boarding home, formerly known as the Ublivik Centre, opened in July under the management of the Kivalliq Development Corporation and now welcomes patients and escorts from throughout the Kivalliq region.

“We’ve been full almost all the time,” said new manager John Pollock. “Our average is 62 residents, but we’ve had up to 80.”

Pollock said that feedback from users has been positive.

“‘It’s a lot cleaner, we’re happier and we feel safer’ one woman wrote,” Pollock said. “That’s because we don’t have any booze. It’s a dry camp.”

No smoking is permitted in the centre, and a 11 o’clock curfew is also enforced.

Pollock said that residents are also pleased that the country foods are served at least twice weekly. He said 80 per cent of the centre’s employees are Inuit from the Kivalliq region.