Pearl Marie Wilson, 60, is accused of killing Jason Shepstone, 46, after he was found unresponsive, with blisters all over his body, in their bedroom on the morning of February 12.

Wilson told police she threw a hot drink at Mr Shepstone when he became violent and aggressive the night before, and later hit him with a metal pole and poured hot water over him during an argument.

The pair then went to sleep, however, Wilson was unable to wake Mr Shepstone the next morning and went to a neighbour for help.

A post mortem concluded Mr Shepstone’s death was the result of multiple blunt force and heat related injuries over his body, however Wilson’s lawyers revealed at a committal hearing earlier this year that they will argue his death was caused by the effects of alcohol withdrawal, rather than the injuries on his body.

Wilson was charged with Mr Shepstone’s murder, however her trial has been delayed for several months amid concerns of Wilson’s deteriorating health.

Reports from four doctors who had assessed Wilson were tendered to a NSW Supreme Court hearing on Friday, each one of which described the significant physical, mental and social problems she faced, including “a history of considerable deprivation, abuse and serious ill health”.

The doctors concluded Wilson had vascular dementia, suffered from chronic anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder that “significantly impacted on her functioning” and had a mild intellectual disability, leading them to conclude she would find it difficult to follow the court proceedings

Wilson’s Aboriginal Legal Services lawyer, Steven Rees, said he’d had ongoing communication problems with Wilson since taking on her case, saying she appeared to have difficulty understanding and retaining basic information and couldn’t grasp issues such as intention, or defences of self-defence or provocation, he said.

Justice Monika Schmidt said the evidence from Wilson’s doctors and Mr Rees made a finding of her being unfit for trial “unavoidable”.

Wilson’s case has now been referred to the Mental Health Review Tribunal.

She was allowed to remain on bail and has been ordered to attend Shellharbour Hospital today for further psychiatric assessment.