Uqaqtittiji, Inuit elders have the right to access home care in their home communities. Elders in Nunavut have had to endure many atrocities in their lifetimes, including residential schools, forced religious conversion and the slaughter of their sled dogs. Being forced to leave their families to get care is unacceptable.
Most Canadian seniors who need care can get it close to their homes. With the lack of investments within my territory, Inuit elders are forced to move thousands of kilometres south to access care. There are no facilities in my territory for persons who have advanced dementia. Enough is enough. Real investments must be made into Nunavut's health care.
Many elders fear dying alone in a place that is not their home and without their families. Many facilities, like the ones found in Ottawa, might not have staff who speak Inuktitut. This limits the quality of care that can be offered.
This separation of culture and the family impacts elders' mental and physical health. The lack of infrastructure funding investments in health care and trained health care workers perpetuates reliance on southern health care. Nunavut has the fewest hospital beds per capita of any province or territory, with one for every 1,100 residents compared to a national average of one per 409 from a 2022 report.
The first nations and Inuit home and community care program is coming to the end of its 10-year anniversary. The government needs to examine the program and make real changes to offer better care.
Will the government stop funding elders to be exiled to the south in budget 2023?