Tony Guss is no stranger to facing difficulties finding housing in Greater Victoria, except as an amputee he’s up against a whole other set of challenges trying to find a home that is accessible.
The Langford man, 59, already was experiencing drop foot and has diabetes, but his health declined further in July 2023.
Guss was admitted to the hospital when got an infection on his foot and has been there since. While he’s been staying at the hospital, his leg had to be amputated because he was suffering from necrotizing fasciitis also known as flesh-eating disease.
According to HealthLinkBC, necrotizing fasciitis “is a very severe bacterial infection that spreads quickly through the tissue (flesh) surrounding the muscles. In some cases, death can occur within 12 to 24 hours. Necrotizing fasciitis kills about 1 in 4 people infected with it.”
Guss’s daughter Brianne Guss said her father wasn’t able to return to his previous living place in Millstream which was $700 because it’s not wheelchair friendly.
“It was down two flights of stairs and the stairs were already causing issues with his drop foot because he would fall down them.”
Brianne has been working with Langford MLA Ravi Parmar to try to find her father accessible and affordable housing. She’s also been connecting with social workers at the hospital who she said have, “exhausted every option.”
At the beginning of December, she said the hospital told her she had to move her father to a shelter which is not ideal for his health conditions.
Guss is unemployed and lives on BC Income Assistance, but now that he has a prosthetic leg he’s hoping to find part-time employment. Still, Brianne has started a GoFundMe as an “absolute last resort,” for her father.
“It’s very a vulnerable thing to have to put up one,” she said. “The last thing I ever want to do is ask people for money especially because I know how tough times are for everyone. I feel like I’ve done everything I possibly can.”
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