A hospital trust in Scotland has been fined £12 000 after a laundry supervisor lost a hand following an industrial accident.
Western General Hospital NHS Trust pleaded guilty to breaches of health and safety regulations in an appearance before Edinburgh Sheriff Court.
The court heard that laundry supervisor Stephen Richardson, 37, trapped his hand while attempting to clear a blockage in an ironing machine.
Witnesses described how Mr Richardson screamed as engineers struggled to free his hand over a 10 minute period.
Hospital doctors were later forced to amputate the hand because it was so badly burned.
The court was then told that workers were supposed to stop the machine to clear blockages, but that due to their frequency the machine was kept going.
Deputy procurator-fiscal John Campbell said that the trust had not enforced safety rules.
In mitigation it was argued for the trust that there had been considerable contributory negligence by Mr Richardson.
