Sad seniors case difficult, but Fraser Health promises to reunite families

B.C.'s Fraser Health Authority is committed to reuniting families after the image of an elderly husband and wife Wolf and AnitaGottschalkwho are forced to live apart caused outcry.

Ashley Bartyik's83-year-old grandfather and his wife of 62 years live in different care homes in Surrey B.C.

Every time they see each other, they cry a moment Bartyik captured in a photo this week.

• Give elderly couples more say in choosing accommodations, says advocate

• 'This is the saddest photo I have ever taken,' B.C. woman says of grandparents forced to live apart

She posted the picture online, where it has been shared thousands of times and made headlines around the world, and she hopes it will draw attention to the shortage of publicly funded beds for seniors in B.C.

Fraser Health spokeswoman Tasleem Jumasaidthe health authority wants to reunite families, but the couple's is challenging because the husband's care needs are considerably higher than his wife's.

So far no solution has been offered for the pair in the photo that caught people's attention.

Senior care lacks creativity

Earlier this week B.C.'sadvocate for seniorscalled on the provincial government to allow greater flexibility for seniors to choose how they want to live their final years.

Isobel MacKenzie was responding theimage ofWolfGottschalkand his wife Anitain tears during a visit at a transition house.

The couple have been living apart for eight months because Wolf is required to receive a higher level of care because of his dementia diagnosis, whileAnita is living in assisted living at The Residence at Morgan Heights.

"I think itcertainly speaks to the need for us to be morecreativearoundhow we are going to allow couples tolivetogether that have different care needs," said Mackenzie on CBC Radio's B.C. Almanac.