Child advocate reviews First Nations child welfare services

New Brunswick's child and youth advocate stopped in the small, northern Esgenoopetitj First Nation on Tuesday as he began his view of child welfare services in First Nations communities.

Bernard Richard met with elders, youth and child welfare workers in the community of about 1,200 people north of Miramichi and asked them to share their concerns and ideas about child welfare services in their community.

Richard said he was hearing"a lot about the issues faced by First Nations and the importance of coming together to solve some of these issues, particularly addictions and alcoholism."

Richard is reviewing the province's 11 First Nations child and family services agencies.

On the first day of his community meetings, Richard said he heard about some major structural problems facing the agencies.

"We have 11 agencies for 15 First Nations," Richard said.

"There's not one single sharing system for information in this day in age. It's hard to hear that. Only one of the 11 agencies actually has electronic information management."

Richard said this undertaking will be the most in-depth review there has ever been of First Nations child welfare services in New Brunswick.

The provincial government asked Richard to take on this review in May after recommendations made by the Child Death Review Committee. The committee's recommendation involved the case of a child who was receiving services from a First Nations child and family service agency.

Former Fredericton Liberal MP Andy Scott and provincial court Judge Graydon Nicholas are also serving as co-chairmen of a special advisory committee set up for this review.

Concrete solutions

Gail Paul, a grandmother who lives in Esgenoopetitj, said she believes these discussions between the government and First Nations communities are important but she wants concrete solutions.

"I've seen a lot of discussions but at the end of the day, it falls on deaf ears," Paul said.

"First Nations and even the outside agencies have to start networking and finding out what resources are available."

Claudette Doiron, a social worker and director ofthe child and family services agency in Esgenoopetitj, told Richard of the daily fight faced by workers in her field.

"It's a struggle to keep our head above water, to have the funding equal to the provincial system, to have the same type of resources to deal with the type of child protection matters that we deal with in First Nations," Doiron said.