Nurse’s aide rises through the ranks to become an OMNI administrator
Thursday October 25, 2007 -- Michelle Strutzenberger
After 16 years of work experience in two different OMNI Health Care homes, Carolyn Della Foresta moved into the role of administrator at Garden Terrace in Kanata October 2.

“I know that this is my life path, to work with seniors,” says Della Foresta, noting she is very happy to have taken on an administrative role within OMNI where she has worked for years and which she has known much longer.

Della Foresta’s experience with the elderly began long before she could even begin applying for a job — it started when she was just a baby.

“I grew up in Almonte Country Haven, then (known as) Almonte nursing home,” she says.

Her mother worked at Almonte, beginning as a registered nurse, moving on to become director of care, and then eventually retiring as administrator.

“My whole life we visited my mom in a nursing home.”

Della Foresta remembers her mother working most holidays because of nursing staff shortages.

“There were five of us (in the family) and every Christmas morning we couldn’t open our gifts because mom wasn’t there.”

Instead, her father would dress up as Santa and the children as elves and they would visit the long-term care home to cheer the residents.

“I’ve always been very comfortable in a nursing home setting,” says Della Foresta, remembering how she used to sit on the laps of residents as a small child or sing and dance for them.

“My mom was always very aware of how important children were to seniors and how important being involved with seniors was to children as well in regards to understanding and compassion.”

At the age of 16, Della Foresta was asked by the Almonte director of care if she would be interested in working as a nurse’s aide.

After learning the details of the job, she agreed to give it a try.

“I still at that time didn’t necessarily consider that this was my career,” she says. “Although I always knew I loved seniors.”

She worked as a nurse’s aide at Almonte for ten years, attending Ottawa University within that timeframe.

Then she heard a presentation in 1999 by OMNI CEO Fraser Wilson on Forest Hill in Kanata. Forest Hill was to be the first new OMNI home to be built.

“It was such an exciting time,” she recalls.

Already having determined that she wanted to switch from working as a nurse’s aide to working in recreation, Della Foresta approached Fraser after the presentation and said to him, “I want to work at Forest Hill. What do I have to do to work at Forest Hill?

“He said, ‘Carolyn, go get educated. Find out what you need to do this position (life enrichment co-ordinator) and go get it and you’ve got a place with us.’”

Della Foresta enrolled in Algonguin College and began the recreation and leisure program September, 1999.

By January, 2001, she was working at Forest Hill full-time, initially involved with all the interviews for front-line staff, reference-checking, hiring and so on. In March she began her position as life enrichment co-ordinator.

When the home officially opened in April of that year, Della Foresta was there to welcome the first resident in the door.

— part one of a two-part series

Read part two: Administrator says mentors, education, OMNI experience have prepared her for new role