STAFF at Salisbury District Hospital have suggested more than 100 money saving ideas in an effort to help it make unprecedented savings over the coming year.

The hospital launched the Save 7 campaign two months ago with the aim of raising awareness of its financial situation and generating ideas to help.

Its focus is that small amounts of individual savings all add up, and if every member of staff saved £7 a week by reviewing and changing the way they work, the Trust could save over a million pounds a year.

In a report for the most recent Trust board meeting, chief executive Peter Hill said: “Since we launched our Save 7 campaign we have had a fantastic response from our staff.

“Thirty members of staff have already volunteered to become Save 7 champions in their areas with staff taking away ideas to investigate within their own teams.

“Recent examples cover savings and more efficient practices in clinical and non clinical areas.

“Staff now have access to a Save 7 intranet toolkit which is a central resource for us to share staff ideas, celebrate staff successes and provide communication and engagement materials.”

Among the ideas to be used are that the Theatres team will no longer use pre-filled morphine syringes and cassettes which are £7 each as opposed to 40p, saving £1,000 a month while the Emergency Department are replacing department stickers/labels with generic ones so that labels can now go with the patient and be used elsewhere in the Trust, saving wasted labels and printing costs.

Another example involves The Laser Centre which has reduced the amount it spends on pressure garments from £36,000 to £22,000, incorporating evidence-based practice and reviewing their extended use bi-annually.

Speaking at the last Trust board meeting, chief operating officer Andy Hyett said: “I’d like to personally thank the recycling team who have, as part of the Save 7 campaign and savings we are trying to make around non pay, gone some way to save real money in us not having to buy hardware and furniture.

“We now have a process in place that before anyone can buy new stuff, they go along to the recycling team to see what’s available.

“It’s a fantastic example of volunteers working with the Trust.”

The Trust has to deliver unprecedented savings of £9.5 million in the coming tax year.