AN ELDERLY woman with dementia was found dead in a river near Abergavenny the day after being reported missing.
Retired teacher Anwen Menna Elliott, 82, died on November 6, 2018, an inquest into her death heard on Tuesday.
She had been admitted to Nevill Hall Hospital two days earlier after police officers found her wandering in Crickhowell, Powys, 10 miles from her home in Mardy.
The inquest heard how Mrs Elliott was a keen walker who continued to enjoy the outdoors despite her declining health. On several occasions she had been found lost and confused.
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Speaking at the inquest, Caroline Saunders, senior coroner for Gwent, said she had been concerned about whether appropriate safeguards had been put in place following Mrs Elliott's discharge from hospital on November 4.
But in a statement, Mrs Elliott's GP described the former teacher as "a free spirit and fiercely independent" who was well known to any local dog-walkers as an "eccentric lady who used to stop and talk to them and their dogs".
Mrs Elliott refused help from her family and from mental health services despite her dementia, the GP said.
Dr Kate Wright, at Nevill Hall, said Mrs Elliott had scored the maximum 15 on the Glasgow Coma score to measure consciousness, and was allowed to go home, on the condition she receive home visits, after doctors had spoken with her relatives.
The inquest heard how Mrs Elliott had disappeared when the first home visit was conducted the following day, prompting the police to begin a search and categorise her as a "high-risk" missing person.
The inquest heard from Mrs Elliott's son, who said he was travelling back to Monmouthshire to help search for his mother when he heard an online police appeal had been taking down, making him "fear the worst".
Mrs Elliott was found dead by the emergency services shortly after 7am on November 6 underneath the River Usk bridge in Llanfoist.
Her son said he had no concerns regarding the search operation nor the treatment or medical support his mother had been offered.
Recording a conclusion of misadventure, Mrs Saunders said it was clear Mrs Elliott had a "stubbornness of spirit", based on evidence from her son and GP.
The coroner said the exact circumstances of events was unclear, but recorded that Mrs Elliott had drowned, and listed dementia as a causative factor in her death.
Mrs Elliott's son said he took the view his mother had died "doing what she loved, and walking was what made her life worth living".
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