Pilot project aims to support medical patients from Beaufort Delta communities

People in Beaufort Delta communities in the N.W.T. now have a new resource if they need to travel for medical reasons but can't get the territorial government to pay for someone to escort them.

The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation announced Wednesday it's launching a pilot project to help beneficiaries pay for medical escorts if territorial benefits don't cover one.

Courtney Keevik, of Tuktoyaktuk, said it's great news — and a program she could have used back in 2021, when she was denied a medical escort to Yellowknife for wisdom teeth removal because the plan was for her to stay at the boarding home.

There, staff would have been on hand to help her if needed — but when she arrived, the boarding home's beds were full, meaning she had to stay alone in a hotel room instead.

Keevik said she went to her surgery and was brought back to the hotel by a medical van service. She said the driver had to help her to her room, which was not his job.

There, she fell asleep alone in her room. She said when she woke up, her mouth was full of blood from the surgery.

"I woke up in a panic and ran downstairs to the front desk because I didn't know what to do. I was so scared," she said.

"I couldn't even talk because my mouth was so full and bloody. I was so upset, I was even crying and calling family members."

Keevik said it would have been easier with someone to watch her.

Keevik is one of multiple people who shared stories with CBC News about difficult situations they experienced due to a lack of a medical escort.

In a Facebook post, the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation described the new program as being intended "to ensure cultural and emotional support for Inuvialuit beneficiary patients."