North grapples with suicides

Emergency centre overseeing support after four recent deaths

The flood of mental health resources arriving in northern Saskatchewan after four recent youth suicides will be coordinated through an emergency operations centre (EOC) established in La Ronge.

Word of the most recent death emerged Monday at the general assembly of the Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC), when the crowd was told of a 10-year-old girl from Deschambault Lake who had ended her life. Her suicide follows those of three youth, ages 12 to 14, in the communities of Stanley Mission and La Ronge in the week of Oct. 4.

Lac La Ronge Indian Band Chief Tammy Cook-Searson said she sends her “deepest condolences” to the community of Deschambault Lake, adding she’s been in close contact with Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation Chief Peter Beatty, offering support to his community.

Because the Lac La Ronge Indian Band is made up of numerous communities, establishing the EOC will help co-ordinate resources while Saskatchewan’s north grapples with a “crisis situation,” Cook-Searson said.

“There’s been a lot of work done by our different departments and agencies and people offering to help ... but we still recognize that we have a lot of work to do,” she said, noting her band is working with the PAGC, the province and the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority to establish the EOC.

“There are still people talking about suicide, so we want to make sure that we’re offering supports,” she said, noting people from across Canada have come forward to help.

“With the establishment of the emergency operations centre, that will better co-ordinate the services that are coming into the community.”

The EOC is expected to be discussed at a meeting Thursday, at which time Cook-Searson said community members and leaders will plan a meeting with youth to hear ideas on how to address the crisis.

“They have ideas and they have solutions to how we can help them.”

Mental health support workers have come from surrounding areas to help. The Prince Albert Grand Council, the Jeannie Bird Clinic in La Ronge, nearby health regions and Health Canada have all issued support.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday that the federal government is committed to working with indigenous communities to deal with the “ever-occurring tragedy.”

“It’s obviously a tremendous tragedy in Saskatchewan that happens all too often, too many young people losing their lives,” Trudeau said.

Saskatchewan’s Rural and Remote Health Minister, Greg Ottenbreit, said the provincial government has established a working group to communicate and co-ordinate with First Nations leaders, community members and agencies on the ground.

“Working through the health regions, we do have mental health supports. We have counsellors, psychiatric supports throughout the north that have been deployed in the area to make sure they’re addressing the needs of the community,” he said. “We’re also in contact with the federal government; we don’t want to make this a jurisdictional issue whatsoever.”

Ottenbreit didn’t remark on what may be the root cause of the issue.

“I don’t want to speculate on that. What I want to do is focus our resources where we can,” he said.

NDP Opposition Leader Trent Wotherspoon said his party offers its support to the government, but there needs to be a stronger presence in the region working with northern leaders.

“We’ll see what governments’ actions are in the days to come and I want to extend to them that we’re here to support the resources and to be a constructive partner,” he said, calling the situation “beyond sad.”

Cook-Searson said while the support from governments is welcome, it’s community members on the ground who continue to work “day-in and day-out” to support the people most affected.

It’s obviously a tremendous tragedy in Saskatchewan that happens all too often, too many young people losing their lives, PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU