'Inspirational nurse' Jayne Carpenter 'found dead at home by husband' after phone call, inquest hears

A nurse who campaigned to raise awareness of the life-threatening condition sepsis after she lost both her legs and an arm to sepsis was found hanged, an inquest heard today.Jayne Carpenter from Merthyr developed sepsis four years ago while suffering with a simple cough.53-year-old Jayne vowed to battle on by fundraising to get pioneering limb surgery not available on the NHS.She had raised over £20,000 of her £265,000 target - but said she was "not having quality of life but enduring it."

An inquest heard her husband Rob, 56, received a call from Jayne on December 7 and she asked him to pick up their dog.He arrived at the house in Merthyr Tydfil, at 4.30pm to find a jumper obscuring a window pane at the front door.The inquest heard Rob went inside to find his wife dead. A cause of death is currently pending further investigations.

After her death, husband Rob paid tribute online and said: "The brightest star in my sky has burnt out."Jayne, who is said to have been desperate to lead an active life, said her independence had been "stripped from me overnight."She had been admitted to intensive care in May 2016 when her cough developed into deadly sepsis - which kills over 30,000 people in the UK every year.Jayne spent nine weeks in a coma and her husband was told she would need multiple surgeries to survive.

After a long recovery, which included months of rehabilitation, Jayne began to share her story in a bid to raise awareness of the condition. She also became a dedicated fundraiser for the Sepsis Trust.

But the nurse, who won a special recognition award from the Royal College of Nursing in 2018, had also been open about the struggles of adapting to life as a quadruple amputee.

She recalled breaking down in hospital after realising how little she could do for herself, saying, "I went from being a fiercely independent woman with 30 years working in nursing, to becoming totally dependent on other people.

"I just could not accept what had happened to me. I would give everything I own to turn back that clock."

The couple hoped she would be able to have surgery - where artificial limbs are attached to a patient's bone.But there were fears she may not have enough bone left for the operation to be successful.Friends and family paid tribute to the "kind and beautiful lady."Assistant coroner Rachel Knight adjourned the inquest in Pontypridd until February 2022.