AS MUCH as £2m of NHS cash is being wasted in Hampshire every year by people ordering prescriptions they do not want, the Daily Echo can reveal.

The money, which should be spent on improving patient care, is lost through unwanted medicines which are currently being returned to pharmacies throughout the county to be destroyed.

Some eight out of ten prescriptions are for repeat medicines and these account for the majority of the drugs returned.

The Daily Echo You Can Help Your NHS campaign, which has received the full backing of Prime Minister Tony Blair and Health Minister Alan Milburn, aims to cut this figure by raising public awareness of the problems faced by the NHS.

Wasted medication is not the only issue causing crises for the health service in Hampshire.

Missed appointments, unreturned equipment and misuse of ambulances are costing the NHS millions each year, at the expense of extra beds, more staff and vital life-saving equipment.

Neil Hardy, pharmaceutical advisor for Eastleigh and Test Valley South Primary Care Trust, said: "Work is underway locally to try to reduce the amount of medicines currently being wasted and improve the systems within practices for producing repeat prescriptions.

"Some local pharmacists have been analysing the medicines returned and reviewing the reasons. Many pharmacists can quote examples of patients, or their relatives, who return boxes of the same medicine - ordered every month - but obviously not being taken.

"One reason for this may be that patients don't like to tell their doctor that they are no longer taking the particular medicine for fear of upsetting him or her."

Mr Hardy added: "If a medicine doesn't agree with you or you feel that you no longer need it then it is important to discuss this with the doctor or nurse at the practice.

"It is also not uncommon for patients to start a new medicine, only to discover after a few days that the tablets cause side effects.

"To avoid waste in this situation, patients may be only given a small quantity initially so that the patient and doctor can monitor the effect."

Patients who have medication they no longer need should return it to their local pharmacy to be destroyed as they have arrangements for safe disposal.

Storing excess medicines in the home increases the risk of accidental poisoning, particularly in children.

Have you missed out on treatment or care because the hospital could not afford it? Do you have any ideas how the public could help the NHS? If so, call health reporter Emma Barnett on 023 8042 4505, fax 023 8042 4545 or e-mail using the link above.