About Us
NICHE Pain Care
NICHE Pain Care is a Thunder Bay Pain Clinic located in our community that provides a much-needed addition to chronic pain care currently offered by our local hospital systems.
Started by Drs. McEwen and Kotteeswaran, pain physicians in Thunder Bay, NICHE Pain Care is dedicated to advancing options and access to pain care options in Northwestern Ontario. NICHE was created to help close critical gaps in care and offer new, community-driven solutions for people living with chronic pain.
Did You Know?
NICHE Pain Care is home to the first pediatric chronic pain program in Northwestern Ontario, supported by the Ontario Ministry of Health.
Many people don’t realize that children experience chronic pain just as often as adults.
Chronic pain affects 18% of Ontarians, but in Northwestern Ontario, that number jumps to 25.4%, or 1 in 4 people.
Pain medicine is a relatively new subspecialty and chronic pain rates have outpaced healthcare’s ability to meet the need.
We're here to help change that.
Our mission
To provide a home for chronic pain care for underserviced populations in Northwestern Ontario.
Our Vision
To create a community-based practice where health professionals work together to provide inclusive and comprehensive care for patients with unique chronic pain challenges.
Land Acknowledgement
NICHE Pain Care respectfully acknowledges that we live, work, and provide care on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe People in Anemki Wajiw within the Treaty Territory of the Fort William First Nation. We recognize the enduring connection that First Nations Indigenous Peoples have to these lands, waters, and all living beings since time immemorial.
We honour the many surrounding First Nations whose members contribute to the strength, resilience, and well being of our region. We recognize that Indigenous Peoples continue to face barriers within health care systems discrimination, and inequitable access to services. We are committed to listening, learning, and working in partnership to advance culturally safe, trauma informed, and equitable care.
We Acknowledge and celebrate the Indigenous staff, patients, Elders, Knowledge Keepers, families, and communities whose knowledge, teachings, and lived experiences enrich our organization and help guide our work. Their contribution strengthens our collective journey toward healing. understanding, and reconciliation.
With gratitude, we give thanks to the land, the waters, the plants, the animals, and the Creator for sustaining all life. We recognize our shared responsibility to care for one another and for the generations yet to come.
Indigenous approaches
We are working to develop Indigenous approaches to chronic pain care by building connections with traditional healers, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers. Our goal is to make cultural supports more accessible, with low barriers to financial assistance for those who need it.
While the primary mandate of NICHE Pain Care is to provide pediatric pain care, our long-term goals include supporting several underserved populations, including Indigenous peoples. Throughout all phases of this clinic’s journey, NICHE Pain Care is committed to consultation with Indigenous partners so Indigenous needs are considered and their ways of knowing are integrated into everything we do.
We're building the soil trees can take root in today for a strong, sustainable future in pain care across Northwestern Ontario
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At NICHE Pain Care, we are committed to fostering an inclusive, equitable, and respectful environment for all individuals and communities we serve. Rooted in Northwestern Ontario, our organization recognizes the diverse needs and lived experiences of children, youth, and families living with chronic pain—especially those in rural, remote, Indigenous, and equity-deserving communities.
We believe that health care must be accessible, culturally safe, and responsive to each person's unique identity, including their age, gender, race, ability, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and socioeconomic background. We proudly welcome and affirm members of the LGBTQ2S+ community, and we strive to ensure our programs reflect and respect the full spectrum of identities and experiences, and build programming based on the IDEAL Framework. (see attached).
We honour Indigenous worldviews and are committed to embedding culturally grounded approaches and community guidance in our care, education, and research.
Through interdisciplinary collaboration and ongoing partnerships with patients, families, health professionals, and communities, we strive to create a welcoming and empowering space where all voices are heard, valued, and reflected in our programs and services.
Inclusivity is not a checkbox—it is the foundation of how we operate, how we deliver care, and how we work together to build a healthier future for all.
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NICHE Pain Care is dedicated to identifying, removing, and preventing barriers to access in alignment with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. We strive to create a safe and welcoming environment—physically, virtually, and culturally—for all patients, families, and community members.
We recognize that many of the individuals we support, particularly children and youth living with chronic pain, may have visible or invisible disabilities. Our team is committed to ensuring services are accessible, respectful, and grounded in equity, cultural safety, and patient voice.
Accessibility of Our Website: We aim to make our website accessible to everyone. If you encounter any content on our site that is not accessible, or if you require information in another format (e.g., large print, plain language, audio), we will be happy to provide it to you upon request.
Do you have suggestions or concerns about accessibility at NICHE Pain Care? We value your input and encourage feedback to help us improve our services and remove barriers.
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At NICHE Pain Care, we are committed to protecting your privacy and maintaining the confidentiality of all personal and health information shared with us. We understand the trust you place in our team, and we take every step to handle your information with care, integrity, and in accordance with Ontario law.
Your Health Record
Your health record includes important details about your care at NICHE Pain Care, such as:
Your name, date of birth, and contact information
Medical history, diagnosis, and treatment plans
Notes from visits with our team
Test results and reports
Information received from other healthcare providers involved in your care
This information is stored securely and is only accessed by authorized staff who need it to support your care.
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You have the right to:
Access your health record: You can request to view or receive a copy of your information. A small fee may apply for copies or staff time.
Ask for corrections: If you believe your record contains errors or missing information, you can ask us to correct it. If we cannot make the correction, you may provide a written statement to add to your record.
To request access to your health record, please contact our clinic at the phone number or email listed below.
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We collect, use, and share your personal health information to:
Provide and coordinate your care
Deliver and improve our programs
Support clinic operations, billing, and quality improvement
Train staff and students
Meet legal and regulatory requirements
We may also share your information with other healthcare providers who are directly involved in your care—unless you tell us not to.
In most cases, we will ask for your permission before sharing your information outside of NICHE Pain Care, including with family members, schools, or insurance providers. You can say no at any time.
Sometimes, we are required or permitted by law to share information without your consent, such as:
To report child protection concerns
To reduce a serious risk of harm
For legal investigations
To comply with public health reporting requirements
We will always aim to protect your privacy and only share the minimum necessary information in these situations.
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We take many steps to keep your information safe:
Paper files are kept in locked cabinets
Electronic records are stored in secure, encrypted systems
Staff follow strict confidentiality and privacy practices
We regularly review and update our privacy safeguards
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If you have any questions or concerns about how your information is handled, please contact our Privacy Officer:
Email: info@nichepaincare.ca
Phone: 807-346-4243
Mail or In-person: 1001 Ridgeway St E, Thunder Bay, ON, P7E 5H8
If your concern is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may also contact:
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto, ON M4W 1A8
📞 1-800-387-0073
🔗 www.ipc.on.ca -
NICHE Pain Care is a Ministry of Health–funded clinic committed to providing community-based pain care to people in Northwestern Ontario, especially those who live in rural, remote, and underserved areas.
Our Pediatric Pain Program is fully funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health. There is no cost to families for assessments, treatment planning, or services provided by our interdisciplinary team.
Our work to develop Indigenous approaches to chronic pain care is also supported through Ontario Ministry of Health funding. This includes access to traditional healing, Elders, and cultural supports, with low barriers to financial assistance for things like travel, accommodations, and services not unlike Jordan’s Principle.