Tsiigehtchic elders ask N.W.T. premier for a full-time nurse

As a Northwest Territories and a rest of Canada continue to rehearse amicable distancing to slow the widespread of a novel coronavirus or COVID-19, a village of Tsiigehtchic is seeking a territorial supervision for a permanent nurse.

The Elders Committee in Tsiigehtchic held an puncture assembly per the situation on Wednesday.

“Now it’s roughly like an puncture conditions where we need to have someone here,” pronounced James Andre, boss of a committee.

Although a licence village has a permanent helper during durations of stream break-up and freeze-up — when no one can expostulate to or from a community — a nurse comes to Tsiigehtchic from Inuvik just once a week during a rest of a year.

Andre said the village has prolonged wanted a permanent nurse, though that’s increased since N.W.T. Health Minister Diane Thom declared a open health emergency in a domain on Wednesday.

At slightest 20 per cent of a village members are during risk if [COVID-19] creates it into a town.– James Andre, president, Tsiigehtchic Elders Committee

As of Thursday during 1 p.m. there were no reliable cases of COVID-19 in a Northwest Territories, and 222 tests had come behind negative. 

Andre penned a grave minute to N.W.T. Premier Caroline Cochrane on interest of elders in Tsiigehtchic. 

“In a past, we have had critical medical situations arise and it’s been adult to a village members to stabilise a chairman before promulgation them out of a community,” a letter reads in part.

“We usually have a tiny population, though during slightest 20 per cent of a village members are during risk if [COVID-19] creates it into a town,” it adds. “How are we going to understanding with it? We have no nurse.”

Tsiigehtchic had a race of 198 in 2018, according to a NWT Bureau of Statistics. 

Frederick Blake, a MLA for a Mackenzie Delta and Speaker of a House, also attended Wednesday’s meeting. He pronounced a miss of a permanent helper in a village is something he brought adult right divided to a territory’s Department of Health and Social Services.

“I knew it was going to be a regard right divided … we are still operative on removing a helper in a community,” he said.

“We have a series of elders here that are during risk, so that is because we were perplexing to get a helper in right divided … with COVID-19 a biggest concerns are a elders.”

The Department of Health did not respond to CBC’s ask for criticism by a time of publication.

Article source: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/tsiigehtchic-elders-nurse-1.5504633?cmp=rss