Taught to be advocates: N.W.T. midwives protest proposed cuts to Yellowknife program

Midwives and supporters of midwife birthing services in the N.W.T. are calling on the territory to "stop the cuts" and reconsider scrapping a program meant to fund midwife jobs in Yellowknife.  

The program, created in 2021, was designed to hire four midwives in Yellowknife to accompany existing birthing services in the capital and provide care to Dettah, Ndilǫ and Behchokǫ̀. 

Last week, the finance minister tabled the budget with proposed cuts to the program to save $990,000. 

Midwife supporters, however, say that's a bad idea. 

Haylee Turi planned to use midwives for the birth of her son. But about a month from her due date, she had to evacuate Yellowknife for the nearby wildfires. Still, she said her midwifery team supported her through the process.   

"It's just one of those things that's proven to be an invaluable service time and time again," Turi said. 

"It's ridiculous that we're proposing this $900,000 budget cut for such an invaluable service."

Turi is one of dozens of protesters who came to the N.W.T. legislature Thursday to protest the proposed cuts. 

After three years, the Yellowknife program has never been fully implemented. There have been intermittent periods of midwifery service in the capital but never an established midwifery team.  

Finance Minister Caroline Wawzonek said that's why she proposed the cuts.

"If the money is sitting there, $900,000 for something that's not been fully implemented, that's not the most transparent for one, but it's also not an effective use of public dollars," she said.

The proposed cuts do not impact midwife services in Hay River and Fort Smith. Those two communities each staff two registered midwives, with vacancies in each. 

Health Minister Lesa Semmler said that supporting services in those communities is also a reason to cut the Yellowknife program and refocus their support to communities that don't have other birthing options. 

"We are barely filling positions in those two communities where there are no prenatal services and no other services that will be provided to members in those communities … so this is where we need to focus on midwifery," Semmler said in the legislature Tuesday.