The trusts are no longer asking for donations, such as toiletries and food, as they now need to focus on the daily running of the hospital.

Joint chairman David Moss said, “Thank you for all your kind donations. It’s really helping us look after the wellbeing of our valued staff, which is in turn helping us deliver quality patient care back to you – our fantastic community.

“But if there’s one gift we’d really like you to give us it’s to stay at home as much as possible, and limit contact with other people.

“If you do go out, please respect social distancing guidelines, follow the two- metre rule, and don’t take risks.”

Across both trusts, funds have been used to purchase various items, including:

• Psychological counselling to support for staff
• iPads for patients to aid communication with loved ones
• Colour printer and resources to print letters, pictures and messages from family members and loved ones for patients during their stay
• Activity boxes for therapists to use with patients recovering from Covid-19
• Thousands of wellbeing packs, including refreshments, sleep masks, hand creams and mindfulness books, puzzles and colouring books, which have been put in specific areas to help promote positive wellbeing and mental health – these packs have also been sent to staff isolating at home to protect their loved ones
• White goods for staff areas including fridges, kettles and microwaves
• Hundreds of wash kits including shampoos, lip balms, shower gel, deodorant, hand creams, lip balms, toothbrush and toothpaste – for staff to take a shower and refresh after a long shift in PPE
• Snacks and refreshments for frontline staff
• Baskets for ward hampers
• Mugs for patients at the end of their lives and their relatives and carers
• Information banners and thank you banners for key workers
• Padlocks for staff lockers in ITU
• Whiteboards for staff wearing PPE to help them communicate with their patients

Across both trusts, physical donations have included approximately:

• 5,000 Mr Lee’s Noodles
• 3,000 Weetabix drinks
• 3,000 Benecol cereal bars
• 10,000 plus Easter eggs from gemsatwork, the National Trust, Barclays bank, Haskins Garden Centre, Holland and Barrett, Coles Miller, WHSmith, Intouch Accounting and many more!
• 1,000 care bags from Parkstone Golf Club
• 2,500 chilled cans of coffee from Costa Coffee and Jimmy’s iced coffee
• 5,000 items from Lush
• 4,000 Innocent smoothies
• Furniture from Made.Com, such as cushions, bins, mugs and radios for wellbeing areas
• Goody bags from Primark
• 100s of Weleda hand cream and shower gels
• 100s of toiletries from global beauty company Coty
• 1,000s of toothpaste and toothbrushes from Colgate
• 3,000 protein bars from Wolfson Brands
• Handmade laundry bags and headbands
• Knitted hearts for patients and staff

There were also specific donations for Poole Hospital.

Colin Summers of Poole Runners organised the Garden Marathon Challenge, which raised £12,000 to be divided between cancer services at Poole Hospital and the Poole Hospital Heroes Fund.

Local Poole business Maverick Race, which organises trail running events in the UK, has raised more than £7,1000 after it produced a T-shirt with the slogan ‘the outdoors will wait’.

Poole Bay Rotary Club and Canford Cliffs Land Society donated £3,500 to help fund The Next – the safe space for staff at Poole Maternity.

The Poole community have also carried out head shaves, virtual challenges, raffles and runs to raise money.

RBCH also received specific donations.

The hospital was grateful for a huge show of support from the community, which started with deliveries of fresh fruit and vegetables from Stewarts Garden Centre.

Jimmy’s Iced Coffee, Shot Beverages and JMS Drinks donated refreshments, Millie’s Cookies donated 3,000 freshly baked cookies, Bournemouth University donated goods from their cafés and goody bags were delivered from Southbourne Taylor Made Estate Agents and Holland and Barrett – some of these were sent to those staff self-isolating at home.

Halfords donated seven brand new bikes for hospital staff whose bikes were stolen as they cared for patients; while Dorset Rough Riders, a local bikers group, donated 10 high quality D-Lock’s for those whose bikes were taken.

An additional number of bikes have been donated by members of the public, with donations also coming from Lush, Sopley Farm, Bournemouth Hebrew Ladies Guild and Christchurch Rotary Club – who donated a marquee for a safe space for the stroke unit staff.

BAE Systems, Merlin Entertainment and Bournemouth University students also donated money and refreshments with numerous local restaurants, including Dominoes and Papa John’s, donating hot food and welcome pizzas.

Sara Fripp, Poole fundraising manager, said, “We’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity and thoughtful donations from our local community.

“From individual supporters, community groups and businesses – it’s been so heart-warming to know how much our staff here are valued.

“Your support and donations to our Poole Hospital Heroes fund will ensure we can continue to care for our valued staff during these unprecedented times.

“We hope that with your help, we can create a lasting legacy of support now and in the future.

“To everyone who’s donated, taken on a challenge, made things, fundraised and supported us, on behalf of everyone at Poole Hospital, I’d like to say a huge thank you.”