Doctor and nurse to pay Kakisa elders regular visits: health authority
Extra help comes in addition to part-time health worker currently employed by band
The Dehcho Health and Social Services Authority says a community health nurse and a doctor will start making regular visits to Kakisa, N.W.T., to check in on a dozen elders who are in need of better care.
The authority says the regular visits — weekly for the nurse, monthly for the doctor — will take effect in June.
"Having that nurse there regularly is going to improve things like chronic disease management, things like medication monitoring [and provide] a better picture of the health of the community," says Donna Allen, the health authority's CEO.
The extra visits will be in addition to the assistance currently offered by a community health worker employed by the Ka'a'gee Tu First Nation band. This person only works 15 hours a week and helps coordinate the elders' medical appointments, according to the health authority.
Last week, Kakisa resident Margaret Leishman complained that the 12 elders living in the community were not being properly cared for, particularly when it came to meeting their dietary needs.
Allen says the band has not requested any home care services to date.
She adds health care workers will visit the community in May to assess what kind of support the elders might need.
The participation of elders in any future home care will be voluntary, she says.