Latest news with #JohnMain
Hamilton Spectator
6 days ago
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
4 Nunavut elders come home to Rankin Inlet
Some elders are starting to come home to Nunavut from their stays in Ottawa, says Health Minister John Main. The first group of elders who will live at the new 24-bed Rankin Inlet long-term care facility arrived back in the territory this week. 'As of today, this group of elders are receiving advanced elder care here in our territory,' Main said, speaking in Inuktitut in the legislature Thursday. 'The Kivalliq facility in Rankin Inlet will be their new home.' Four elders have arrived so far and more are on their way. Main said they will come north on three or four medevac flights per week. 'A state-of-the-art facility — the first of its kind in Nunavut — awaits them with [a] culturally enriching, safe and home-like environment,' he said. 'We know that the elders who will live there want to hear Inuktitut being spoken. They want Inuit values and culture reflected in the activities and in the food they are served.' The 24-bed facility was completed in January following several delays and opened in May. Its 22 permanent-care beds will be occupied by July, said Charmaine Deogracias, a Health Department spokesperson. The other two beds are for temporary respite care. Main said the process of hiring and training people to work in the facility is ongoing. The $59.4-million project is one of three long-term care facilities the government plans to build in the territory by 2030 as part of its Aging with Dignity strategy. Long-term care facility projects are also planned for Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay.
Hamilton Spectator
29-05-2025
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
Nunavut legislature approves law allowing pharmacists to give vaccines
Within the next 18 months, Nunavummiut may be able to see a pharmacist for vaccinations and treatments for minor illnesses. The Pharmacy Profession Act passed third reading Tuesday in the Nunavut legislative assembly. It awaits assent before it becomes law. The bill is 'a comprehensive modernization of Nunavut's pharmacy legislation,' Health Minister John Main told the committee of the whole Tuesday, before the bill was voted on. 'Traditionally, pharmacists focused on dispensing medications and providing basic drug information,' he said. 'Today, their role has expanded to include a broader range of clinical services, such as administering vaccines and supporting chronic disease management.' Main said the need to modernize Nunavut's pharmacy laws came to a head during the COVID-19 pandemic. While Nunavummiut were rolling up their sleeves to get vaccinated, the Department of Health was legally unable to employ pharmacists to administer shots – something pharmacists in other jurisdictions, such as Ontario, were able to do. Examples of some of the minor ailments someone could see a pharmacist for in the future include skin conditions and urinary tract infections, Main said. In addition to expanding what pharmacists can treat, the bill establishes a pharmacist registration committee, outlines a complaints and discipline process, and allows for pharmacists to provide remote care to people in communities without a pharmacy. 'Right now, our legislation doesn't properly support remote dispensing or tele-services, but that's something that in the new bill is properly laid out and supported,' he said. The bill becomes law once it receives assent from Nunavut Commissioner Eva Aariak, which usually happens on the final day of sitting. After that, more work will be needed to draft regulations, which Main estimated would take a year to a year and a half roll out. That work will include educating pharmacists, pharmacist technicians and their employers. Janet Pitsiulaaq Brewster, Iqaluit-Sinaa MLA and co-chair of the standing committee on legislation, told the committee the new legislation will 'improve the territory's health-care delivery system as a whole.' Tyler Gogo, spokesperson for the Canadian Pharmacists Association, agrees. 'This legislation is a significant step forward and will help to modernize pharmacy care in the territory, bringing it closer in line to other jurisdictions in Canada,' he said in an email. 'By allowing pharmacists to work to their full potential across Canada, pharmacists can provide the care they are trained and trusted to deliver.'
CBC
29-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
Nunavut passes legislation to allow pharmacists to perscribe medication
The territory's legislature has passed legislation making that change possible. We spoke with John Main about what's next.
