Derek Neary
Northern News Services

FORT SIMPSON (Apr 30/99) - While the future of the Stanley Isaiah Seniors Centre is somewhat uncertain, it's almost guaranteed that it will remain a facility for seniors' use.

When the Fort Simpson Health Centre opens its new 20-bed, long-term care facility in September, the centre will no longer be used for that same purpose. A meeting to discuss potential uses for the Stanley Isaiah's main building, which houses 15 people in its eight single rooms and two double rooms, was held at the Cultural Centre last week.

Mavis Cli-Michaud, chair of the Fort Simpson Housing Authority Board, said, "We need to have input. This is new to us... We have the seniors at heart."

Some suggestions at the meeting, which was attended by 15 people and lasted over two hours, included designating a couple of rooms in the facility for transient medical patients -- elders from out of town who are visiting for health-care reasons. Another suggestion was to make it an independent-living, "user pay" apartment building, where the residents could share the common kitchen and have a live-in security person, similar to the seniors' home in Fort Providence. Celine Antoine, also with the Fort Simpson Housing Authority, estimated that it would cost $150,000 per year to maintain the building as a support-care facility. That would cover groceries, cooks, janitors and security, she suggested.

Cli-Michaud said the "user-pay" option is one source of funding along with the possibility of the NWT Housing Corporation and Deh Cho Health and Social Services (DCHSS). Kathy Tsetso, chief executive officer of DCHSS, said she doesn't know what DCHSS will supply in terms of funding but she said retaining the Stanley Isaiah Seniors Centre as a long-term care facility was out of the question because DCHSS will not fund duplicate services.

Chief Tim Lennie, representing Wrigley, said there is an "urgent need" for seniors care in his community. He said he would be willing to contribute a percentage of the First Nations housing funding from his community. He also suggested that leaders from other Deh Cho communities should have been asked to attend the meeting to find out if they were willing to do the same thing or if they had other possible solutions. It was agreed that other community leaders should be invited to the next meeting, possibly in May, which is when the next Fort Simpson Housing Authority board meeting is to be held.

A little later, an elder in attendance spoke up and revealed that a Fort Simpson's elders' council, consisting of seven members, had recently been re-established. She said they had met and discussed the future of the Stanley Isaiah Seniors' Centre but she couldn't speak on their behalf without their consent. She did say that she would present to them the information that was brought forth at Wednesday's public meeting and they would then make a further decision on how to proceed.

The Fort Simpson Housing board oversees the Stanley Isaiah Seniors Centre, but Cli-Michaud said the seniors' committee, along with similar committees from other communities, would be welcomed to work alongside the housing board. Some people suggested that the seniors should be making the decisions strictly for themselves.

Tsetso was questioned about whether the capacity of the new long-term care facility would be sufficient for the entire region. She said the 20 beds were based on a needs' assessment conducted three years ago, and although she admitted she cannot predict how many beds may be required at times, she said "I think we'll be OK." She added that a home-care program is now being implemented in Fort Simpson and will be offered in other communities in the future.

The apartment units or "clusters" surrounding Stanley Isaiah are currently all occupied. Tsetso said some of those residents require care, but they are reluctant to leave their homes.