The NWT faces a "brain drain" problem following 2023's evacuation, according to a recent after-action review that assessed how well the territorial government handled the situation.

According to that review, Transitional Solutions Inc. (TSI) the Edmonton-based consulting firm hired to conduct the assessment, noted what it calls brain drain as a loss to the territory.

"Many valued community members and skilled team members have had to or have chosen to leave, either relocating or stepping away from their roles," the review explained. "This departure has led to a significant 'brain drain,' referring to the loss of skilled individuals from a region. This has weakened the territory's collective resilience and ability to recover and rebuild effectively."

Jenn McManus, the Indigenous engagement advisor for TSI, said that across all the groups the firm spoke to, one common theme people pointed out was that some individuals were stepping down from their roles in the GNWT. 

"Families and individuals noted that they were actually leaving the territory and choosing to reside somewhere else in Canada," said McManus. "Some individuals were moving from emergency management and into other departments within the government or at the municipal level."

In particular, McManus said people working in emergency management or first responders were the most common group hit with brain drain. McManus also noted that TSI did not hear much feedback with regards to health and social services, so it would seem unlikely that the 2023 wildfire season has much to do with staffing concerns at Stanton Territorial Hospital right now, in particular its emergency department. 

Although TSI did not hear much from those working in health and social services, McManus said 2023 was a deep burden on frontline service providers and the health sector in general, especially coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

That's almost exactly what Dr. Courtney Howard, president of the NWT Medical Association, had to say as well when asked by 黑料吃瓜网 if TSI鈥檚 findings track with her experience. 

"There was the disruption of Covid that put a lot of stress on the physician community,鈥� said Howard. 鈥淔or that to be followed so quickly by the wildfires, and the wildfire related evacuation, particularly given the lack of preparation for an evacuation, it puts a lot of strain on the community and on people."

Howard made it clear she has no statistics to back up any concrete claim, but did say she thinks the two stressors combined have likely contributed to some physicians deciding to move to other parts of Canada, or lead them to considering moving away from the NWT.  

Not a single GNWT representative, be it a bureaucrat or politician, was present during a media briefing to answer questions about the After-Action Review. Instead, Premier R.J. Simpson and Municipal and Community Affairs Minister Vince McKay issued statements about the report's findings minutes before it went public. 

The GNWT says it is preparing a formal response to the report鈥檚 recommendations for summer 2025 and won't comment until then.

黑料吃瓜网 reached out to the Department of Finance for some figures on what its brain drain amounts to, but did not hear back in time for publication.

See page 4 for a report on the review itself.