We are Niagara Health is a series of stories that celebrates the incredible people working and volunteering in our organization and how they make a difference in the lives of patients and coworkers every day.
Paige Bodner didn’t need a career aptitude test to tell her she should pursue a career as an addictions counsellor. For as long as she could remember, she already knew.
“I saw firsthand in high school friends who were going down the wrong path and I wanted to know why,” she says. “And then more questions started popping up – why do some people become addicted and not others? I watched someone I knew well go down that path, and it made me want to prevent people from getting to that point where they’re making those choices.”
Her curiosity about substance use and the way it impacts people led her to the New Port Centre at the Port Colborne Hospital.
“When I learned that Niagara Health offers addictions programs, I thought it would be a great place for a career,” she says. “I really wanted to get into healthcare and to be involved in people’s recovery. I didn’t know how many options and programs there were.”
The New Port Centre offers residential treatment and community support options to help people overcome substance use tailored to clients’ unique needs.
“New Port was where I knew I was meant to be,” Bodner says. “I love the teaching aspects of the workshops we have for clients and getting to work in a team environment as opposed to being on the paperwork side of things. I also love having the ability to see clients from the beginning to the end of their time in the program. There’s so much growth and positive change that can happen. It’s incredibly rewarding.”
Some of the workshops at New Port include anger and stress management, healthy coping skills and meditation. Structure and routine is considered paramount at New Port; in general, both are key components in aiding with recovery from addictions and success in remaining sober.
For Bodner, the mornings are typically spent helping clients get their start to the day and assisting nurses who give out medication to clients; participating in a staff meeting to debrief and strategize on the day’s game plan and what clients’ needs are; leading a morning motivation group session; leading another larger group activity; and conducting 1:1 sessions for individual counselling.
The afternoons consist of lunch; going for group walks in the community; leading a group counselling session; then ending the day with additional 1:1 counselling sessions if needed before wrapping up notes to end the day.
Prior to becoming an addictions counsellor, Bodner was already a Niagara Health staff member in the Food Services department, where she started her career at the hospital in 2015.
“There’s so many benefits to working at Niagara Health,” says Bodner. “The hospital has such a large presence in the Niagara region and it’s nice to be part of a supportive team that’s trying to better the community at large by keeping everyone healthy and giving them access to the services and care they need.”
While the presence feels close to Bodner as a lifelong Niagara resident, it runs even closer than that. Working at Niagara Health is a family affair. Her mom worked for the hospital for more than 30 years before retiring in 2021.
Bodner’s sister, two step sisters and brother-in-law also work for the hospital.
“We’re slowly taking over Niagara Health,” she jokes.
One of her step sisters, Kaitlin Cornelius, works as a recreational therapist in Mental Health. She and Bodner had the opportunity to work together for awhile, and understanding some of the similarities of their jobs has been a useful tool in problem-solving and sharing ideas to help set clients and patients up for success.
“We never talk about patient specifics, but it’s really helpful to communicate about a lot of things going on at work,” Bodner says. “It’s a luxury to be able to talk to family about work and already have them have a lot of the intel.”
It’s a support she’s grateful for, and feels it beyond her family at Niagara Health.
“There’s so many benefits to working at Niagara Health,” says Bodner. “The hospital has such a large presence in the Niagara region and it’s nice to be part of a supportive team that’s trying to better the community at large by keeping everyone healthy and giving them access to the services and care they need.”
“I’ve had challenging personal times in my life and it was nice to know that Niagara Health had my back and supported me in different ways,” says Bodner. “It’s nice to be part of a supportive team that’s trying to better the community at large, keep everyone healthy and give residents access to the help they need.”
The person Bodner knew in high school who partly influenced her decision to become an addictions counsellor eventually checked into the New Port Centre for treatment.
“They seem to be doing great and still sober since completing the program,” Bodner says. “It’s nice to see that this specific program I work at, even if I wasn’t directly involved in their care, still helped to turn their life around. It’s hard to ask for help, so when people do, it’s an honour to be part of that journey.”
