Jennifer Pritchett
Northern News Services

RANKIN INLET (Jul 15/98) - With the closure of Kiguti on only two weeks away, the Keewatin Regional Health Board is still without a replacement for the dental service.

According to interim CEO Jack MacKinnon, there will be a break in some services following Kiguti's exit, and he is unsure how long it will take to get the new program up and running.

"There's going to be a small break in full service," he said. "Services will still be available, but in what form they are, we're still working on. Health Canada has offered to provide us with dentists if necessary."

The board and the Kivalliq Inuit Association have been working together to develop a new dental program since the not-for-profit company contracted out by the board to provide dental services in the region decided to pull out.

The decision was made after Ottawa cut 30 per cent from dental-care funding April 1.

Three months after the Kiguti announcement, the board does not expect to get its own equipment and personnel in place immediately following Kiguti's exit July 31, so the board is developing a contingency plan with the KIA to ensure that there are some services available in the region.

Getting the necessary dental equipment bought, shipped, and installed in the region's three clinics in Arviat, Rankin Inlet and Baker Lake is causing at least part of the delay. The board chose not to buy the existing equipment owned by Kiguti when they couldn't agree on a price.

So the board plans to buy $150,000 in dental chairs, X-ray machines and other equipment this week.

"It would have been more expedient to do (buy Kiguti's equipment)," said MacKinnon. "We are currently getting quotes from dental supply companies. We're buying the equipment this week ... it takes three to four weeks to get here."

The board is interviewing candidates for six dental therapists and a program manager. The competition closed last Friday for applicants to replace the outgoing therapists, several of whom were fired last year in the KRHB's move to replace them with dentists.

"We tried to contact all the dental therapists and as far as I know, we were successful in doing so," he said.

The board is also continuing the search for dentists, but hasn't yet hired any.

MacKinnon maintained that more information will be available about the emerging new regional dental program at the end of this week.