STAFF at Dorset County Hospital (DCH) rallied round to show their support for the national NHS Sustainability Day.

The day was a nationwide initiative aimed at encouraging both NHS staff and the public to think about how they can make changes to work smarter, be greener, and potentially save themselves and the NHS money.

Several activities took place across Dorset at the county’s hospitals for the day on March 26, which was backed by the Dorset CCG.

At DCH, an information stand was installed in Damer’s Restaurant between 11am and 2pm to provide details on what is already being done to reduce the site’s carbon footprint and it also gave information on how to reduce energy consumption.

Staff at the Dorchester-based hospital also took part in a sustainability to quiz.

Tim Goodson, chief officer of NHS Dorset CCG, said he had a keen interest in sustainability within the organisation.

He said “Working in a sustainable way is everyone’s responsibility so we are always keen to support any activity or initiative that raises awareness of sustainability issues.”

Along with the other events happening at hospitals in Bournemouth and Poole, staff from the CCG also took part.

At the organisation’s base in Dorchester, a free bike clinic was held for people who cycle into work plus an information stand on electric cars.

There was also a number of training initiatives on how to become greener, and TUC Green Workplace gave demonstrations on how to save energy at home and in the workplace.

Mr Goodson added: “Within the CCG we do our best to promote sustainable issues, a good example of which is our staff intranet which has recently seen the addition of a transport hub which encourages greener travel, giving staff information on public transport services, cycle schemes, car clubs and encourages the use of lift share for both getting to work and travelling to meetings.

“Whilst NHS Sustainability Day is a one off we hope that by raising these issues across the local health community we are able to make more permanent changes that will benefit the whole county.”

The Dorset Healthcare Trust also marked the day by hosting a number of sustainability and environmental initiatives on sites across the county.