After much public confusion over health services in Nunavut, Health Minister Kelvin Ng was finally persuaded to look into the dealings of the health boards in the Keewatin and Baffin.

The internal review by the Department of Health was greeted with considerable skepticism. For too long Ng's reaction to protests from hamlet and regional leaders was to refuse to acknowledge any problems, adding that it was better to leave well enough alone.

To Ng's credit, the review was done quickly. More importantly, the results were made public, removing most of the compelling reasons for a costly public inquiry.

While the language is low key, the report doesn't pull any punches. The authors found both boards had practised poor communication and had inadequate plans, warning that specialist services could be disrupted.

It is obvious from the report that the Health Department must bear some of the responsibility for failing to ensure proposed changes were handled properly.

Much of what the boards are attempting is being done to get the best out of their shrinking budgets. The Baffin board has had an arrangement with McGill University for over 30 years to provide specialist medical services. The Keewatin had a similar relationship with the University of Manitoba.

To save money on administration costs, the Keewatin board has already ended the contract for general practitioners and is recruiting its own, which should also make for better service. The Baffin is considering a change to Ottawa.

Major changes in health care must always be undertaken with careful planning, lest things get out of hand. The internal review makes key recommendations that require corrective steps be taken by the boards and that the department resume an active role.

Now that all the players understand how things can go wrong and shake public confidence, they should be able to avoid similar incidents in the future.

Last year the federal government and the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation signed an agreement to create a national park near Paulatuk.

The park, to be called Tuktut Nogait, doesn't exist yet, though. It remains a concept awaiting final approval from Ottawa. Meanwhile, mining exploration by the young firm of Darnley Bay Resources, continues, encouraged by promising results from tests on an unusual geological formation inside what will be the park's boundaries.

The question remains: is this a park or a mining site? What is the federal government waiting for? Surely not the results of the mining exploration. Or does somebody know something we don't?