A Kemptville senior who was forced to live in a separate care home from his wife of 63 years has passed away. The family of Ken Burnett said he died in hospital on Thanksgiving Monday.
“I was waiting for a long, long time,” said his wife Joan Burnett. “Waiting for him to get in, but it didn’t happen… I guess he’s at rest.”
Ken, who required more care than his wife, was placed at Medex Long Term Care Home (LTC) in Ottawa earlier this year. Joan was living 45 minutes away in a retirement facility at Bayfield Manor, in the couple’s hometown of Kemtpville.
For six months the couple’s family had been pleading with the Community Care Access Centre, who manages LTC waitlists, to move Ken to the same facility as his wife, saying his mental and physical health were declining as a result of being apart.
The couple’s son, Jack Burnett, said they were told Ken would be moved to a room suitable for his needs down the hall from Joan at Bayfield as soon as a space became available. In September, there were seven people ahead of Ken on the wait list.
“I was hoping for a miracle, I hoped someone could do something, and hear our cry,” said Jasmine Burnett, Jack’s wife.
In a statement the CCAC told CTV Ottawa, “… private residence location does not influence placement prioritization into regulated Long Term Care (LTC) beds and this is out of scope of LTC regulations.” – Jennife Schenkel, CCAC.
The couple then reached out to the Health Minister’s office, and were told “CCACs do have sole responsibility for managing the waiting lists for Long-Term Care Homes…”
The Burnetts, who were hoping for an exception, said they were told Ken was not a crisis situation because his care needs were being met. The family believes while his physical needs were being met, emotionally the situation has been devastating.
“It’s terrible that couples are apart, especially in Ontario,” Jack said.
In the middle of planning a funeral on Monday, the family took time to share their story with the hopes that this is the last time a couple is forced to live apart.
