PEOPLE are being invited to attend a virtual Health Focus event hosted by the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. 

The event, on Thursday, May 16, at 6pm, aims to inform the public about different sustainable initiatives put in place at hospitals managed by the trust in Basingstoke, Winchester, and Andover.

Trust chief executive Alex Whitfield, chief strategy and population health officer Shirlene Oh, and other NHS staff whose roles involve delivering projects at the Trust's hospitals, will speak at the event. The objective is to shed light on their sustainability projects and answer any questions from the public.

READ MORE: Andover breast cancer patients to benefit from wider use of special test

An instance of these sustainable initiatives is a recent project where the hospitals managed to decrease their carbon emissions by an amount equivalent to travelling almost 7,000 miles in a single month. Spearheaded by the trust’s pharmacy team, the initiative involved transferring patients' medication with them and returning unused medicine so that it could be reused, negating the need for disposal.

Over one month, medicines valued at £6,942 were returned for re-dispensing across eight wards, thus saving 2,360 kg of CO2e.

SEE ALSO: Hampshire NHS joint venture acclaimed with national award for innovation

Shirlene Oh said: "As an NHS trust, we’re committed to empowering our staff to drive forward innovative solutions that will enhance patient care and simultaneously contribute to the sustainability of healthcare delivery at our hospitals.

"Through adopting innovative ideas, we’re addressing healthcare challenges at our sites with an aim of ensuring that we’re fit for a sustainable future, putting our patients and staff first.

"Please do join us virtually on the night to hear more about all of the exciting work our colleagues are doing here at Hampshire Hospitals."

The link to register for the event is events.teams.microsoft.com/event/e4580beb-eb61-4ed7-be57-2a126cdf885b@302ac042-ef93-4000-a113-5bdf15f10085.