Half-blind Gloucestershire widow killed herself after her incapacity benefit was axed Jacqueline Harris, 53, died at home in Kingswood, Glos in November 2013 Former nurse had suffered with injuries and disabilities since the 1990sÂ But in August 2012 she was deemed as being fit to work by Atos assessors At the time, she was awaiting a major spinal procedure to relieve her pain Two-minute test asked one question: whether she was able to catch a bus She became suicidal as she battled to cope with pain after failed operation Government said Atos assessors made wrong decision, her sister claims Christine Norman said ruling had 'defeated' her and 'gave her no hope' Half-blind Jacqueline Harris, 53, from Kingswood, Gloucestershire, killed herself after her incapacity benefit was scrappedÂ A half-blind widow who dealt with excruciating back pain for more than ten years took her own life after being stripped of her incapacity benefit because government assessors said she was fit enough to catch a bus. Despite being in constant pain, former nurse Jacqueline Harris had her benefit stopped after being told she was fit enough to work following a two-minute fitness assessment. The 53-year-old - who had claimed incapacity benefit for several years - was waiting for a major spinal operation when the decision was made after an assessment by Atos, the Government-appointed private company behind the controversial fitness-to-work tests. She was found dead at her home in Kingswood, south Gloucestershire, in November 2013, with a self-made 'do not resuscitate' note pinned to her chest. She died just weeks before a hearing to appeal the decision to the Department for Work and Pensions.Â An inquest into her death heard how Mrs Harris had been struggling with back pain, as well as a range of other injuries, since the late 1990s. But, in August 2012, Mrs Harris had been declared fit to work.Â After a failed operation to relieve pain on her spine three months after the assessment, Mrs Harris attached a note to her pyjamas before taking a cocktail of drugs.Â According to her sister Christine Norman, Mrs Harris had been asked just one question during the assessment, which was whether she was able to catch a bus.Â Â Mrs Norman claims the Government has since ruled that Atos should never have declared her sister fit for work. Speaking outside court, Mrs Norman, 58, who is also a nurse, said her younger sister's decline was 'triggered' by the decision to replace her incapacity benefit with Jobseekers' Allowance. She said: 'It gave her no hope. She was defeated. What hope did she have? A month after her death we got a letter about her appeal hearing. I didn't tell them she had died and went along myself. I said to them "I'm disgusted." Atos should be shot. During the inquest in Bristol, the court heard how Mrs Harris lived with a series of disabilities and injuries since the 1990s. It had started when she slipped during an accident at work, causing bulging discs in her back and neck. Mrs Harris also suffered from pain due to a dog bite that made her feel as though her hands was 'in a meat grinder being peeled', the inquest heard. The court also heard how Ms Harris had suffered a blow to the head in an industrial accident in 1987, which left her partially-sighted with failing vision. As her back pain grew worse over the years, Mrs Harris started to seek help from doctors, attend pain management courses and have physiotherapy. But she was soon having difficulty walking and suffered pain in her arms, hands, feet and hips. Eventually, she was referred to Bristol Spire Hospital for an operation to relieve the pressure on her spine. But, while she was waiting for the treatment, she was asked to attend an Atos assessment in August 2012, which ruled she was fit to work. Despite her operation failing, and her pain not being relieved, she was still forced to work. Speaking at the time of her death, her sister Christine said during this 'two-minute' hearing that Mrs Harris was asked only one question about catching a bus before her incapacity benefit was scrapped. Her sister Christine Norman (pictured) said the ruling had given Mrs Harris 'no hope' and made her want to end her life She said Ms Harris pleaded with the government workers, explaining she was waiting for a complex operation three months later. But her pleas were apparently ignored.Â Speaking in the inquest, her sister added: 'She knew she wasn't going to get any help. She was waiting for a review date for an appeal. I knew she wasn't going to wait till this date. We both knew she would not be able to stand the pain for much longer. She had pressure put upon here and she got no help.'Â The inquest heard Mrs Harris had her operation, but there was a 'recognised complication' which meant her pain was not alleviated. Despite her pain being worse than ever, Mrs Harris was still expected to look for work through the Job Centre. The only benefit she received was Jobseekers' Allowance. But her sister said staff at the centre once had to call an ambulance because she suffered an 'absent episode' - a regular occurrence where she blanked out because of the pain. Her sister told the court: 'Her life really had no meaning. She just could not cope with the pain. Everything was an effort and she was in serious pain. Atos Healthcare, the private firm which is responsible for fitness-to-work assessments, has regularly come under fire for its procedures,Â amid claims people are being wrongly recommended for work or put through stressful medical interviews. The assessments are used to gauge eligibility for employment and support allowance and incapacity benefit. Atos conducts an assessment called the Work Capability Assessment on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.Â The company makes no decisions on a personâ€™s entitlement to benefit. A new provider will take over delivery of the Work Capability Assessment in March this yearÂ They were piloted by Labour in 2008 and were rolled out across the country by the Coalition. More than two million recipients of employment and support allowance â€" the successor to incapacity benefit â€" are now having their health assessed by private contractor Atos.Â Ministers argue it is vital that people able to work are moved off benefits and back into employment. They accuse the last government of abandoning people to a life on benefits. But critics claim the tests are heavily skewed towards forcing people back into work, causing huge distress for some who are genuinely ill. In June this year, it emerged that the company had a backlog of more than 700,000 people waiting to be assessed. Appeals are against a Department for Work and Pensions benefit decision and Atos are not involved in the appeals processÂ One third of its decisions have been overturned on appeal and the firm has become a lightning rod for Left-wing critics of the Governmentâ€™s welfare reforms. Earlier this year, the company revealed it has been in discussions with officials for â€˜several monthsâ€™ about ending its work capability assessment contract, which was due to run until August 2015, early.Â Â 'Jacqueline decided she would appeal Atos' decision. She was also intent on not continuing this life in this state. She detested her existence. Disempowered, she wanted to die. The inquest heard her GP referred her to the Bristol Primary Care Liason - the mental health team - in May 2013 after Mrs Harris started to express a wish to end her life. She told family and medical professionals she had invited auctioneers into her home to value her belongings. She claimed she had also written a will, set aside belongings she wanted to give to family members and withdrawn money to pay for her funeral. But after she apparently refused to engage with workers they 'stepped back' in July, the inquest heard. Workers briefly made contact with her again in November after a worried call from a friend, but again she refused to accept help. They wrote a letter to her discharging her back to her GP on November 1. The next day, her neighbour discovered her dead on her kitchen floor. A post mortem found Mrs Harris had 'willfully' taken a mix of powerful drugs. Pathologist Dr Basil Purdue said the high levels of just one of the drugs would have been enough to prove fatal. The police officer who found her body said it was clear she had planned her death. After breaking down in tears, PC Joanne Manning told the inquest that the troubled woman had pinned a 'do not resuscitate' order to her pyjama top, and also one above her bed. She said: 'There was an unbelievable amount of medication that Jacqueline was on. There was a lot of varying colours and sizes of tablets. She added: 'It was quite clear that this had been planned for some time by Jacqueline. Throughout her property there was possessions small and big that had post-it notes on saying this is for so and so, this is for so and so. A psychiatrist who visited Mrs Harris to carry out a mental health assessment in May 2013 said she was not fit to work. Dr Helen Sterling said she was aware she had talked about ending her life and said this was down to her extreme pain. When asked by assistant coroner Dr Peter Harrowing if there were any other reasons for her suicidal thoughts, she said: 'She was a lady in her 50s who despite whatever people had said about her, she was not fit to work. She could not had fulfilled a job. She was already partially sighted so work was already difficult. 'There are a lot of risk factors that increase the likelihood, that increase the risk, of people feeling suicidal.'Â An Atos Healthcare spokesperson said: 'Our sympathies go out to Ms Harrisâ€™s family. We work hard to treat people with compassion and respect during what we understand can be a difficult process. We carry out assessments on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions and under its guidelines, sending them detailed information about a personâ€™s health conditions. But we do not make decisions on peopleâ€™s benefit entitlement, nor are we involved in the appeal process.'Â Coroner Dr Peter Harrowing ruled that Jacqueline committed suicide. He praised the work of the mental health team and concluded there was nothing they could have done to prevent her death.Â Â Â In a statement, her sister told a coroner: 'She had a slipped disk, a compressed disk in her neck, she had radiating pain down both of her arms and was constantly dropping things. She decided to take up dog sitting but unfortunately she was badly bitten and ended up at the Bristol Royal Infirmary. This led to an infection and several bones had to be removed from her left hand. She was obviously left handed. She was also under pressure from ATOS - refit to work. She was called as a 'fit to work'. She told them that she was waiting for an operation but they didn't give her any dispensation or even a review date. The operation failed and she was unable to control the pain left.