Board papers noted that the costs of pharmacy items, wastage and write-offs “remained a concern”.
The committee report read: “The committee was advised of a pharmacy fridge door which was recently inadvertently left ajar and led to £25,000 of medication being rendered unusable.
“However, regarding pharmacy wastage, it was noted that several mitigations had been identified which could save a significant amount of money for the trust; a business case was in the process of being developed, which if successful, would increase the capacity for medicines recycling, leading to less wastage.”
A SaTH spokesperson said the trust “is committed to reducing waste to ensure value for money” and is always looking for new opportunities.
They added: “The overall cost of pharmacy waste remains around the trust’s target and while it has increased slightly, this is due to an increase in costs of purchasing medicines.”