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New Service NWT COVID Support Line – 8 1 1

The government of NWT has released a new Service NWT COVID Support Line, reachable at 8-1-1, to provide resident with access to an easy to use number to reach  established self-isolation, enforcement, and regional centre accommodations lines.

NWT Minister of Health and Social Services made the announcement saying “Government should be as accessible as possible – especially in crises like we face today. The Service NWT COVID Support Line will help unify our services under one portal, and get our residents the help they need throughout this pandemic.”

Diane Thom says the line will have staff to provide callers with accurate information about COVID-19 and how it relates to residents of the NWT through the following means:

  • Answering questions about COVID-19.
  • Determining if they should contact their local health centre to arrange for testing using the assessment guide.
  • Accepting credible, specific complaints of individuals not following public health orders for further consideration.
  • Providing them contact info to local health care providers and resources.
  • Providing contact information to other services as requested to help them during this time of physical distancing and self-isolation.
  • Other staff will also be able to provide information on what services are still available in their communities.

    Minister Thom strongly states that 8-1-1 is not for the following items;

  • A resource for clinical advice
    • if clinical advice is required, GNWT encourages residents to contact their primary health care provider or local health centre
  • A triage system to determine order of priority of who will be seen in a health centre or hospital
  • A source of pharmaceutical information
    • GNWT encourages everyone to contact their local pharmacy and/or health care professional if they have questions about their medication.

All lines will run seven-days-a-week and will be staffed from 8am-8pm, with the exception of the Protect NWT enforcement line, which will have on-call staff available 24 hours a day.

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Interpretation services will be available for those who need it.

This will allow all NWT residents to get all their COVID-19 questions answered at one easily-remembered number.

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