The amount of money paid out in compensation to north-east medical staff for injuries sustained while working has quadrupled in just three years.
New figures, released by the Scottish Conservatives, have revealed almost £150,000 was paid out to NHS Grampian employees between 2016-18.
A variety of claims were settled for a range of incidents, including exposure to contaminated blood and violence at the hands of the public.
Last year alone there were 13 claims settled for £96,771 after staff were exposed to hazardous substances and tainted blood.
In addition, employees also sought compensation after being attacked by patients, or were hurt by equipment or vehicles.
In 2017, there were 10 claims settled at £30,823, and in 2016 there were seven claims worth £16,500.
There were 57 claims made in total between 2016-19.
The compensation is not paid by individual health boards and instead comes from a national insurance scheme.
A prominent medical union said “much more” needs to be done to improve working conditions for staff.
Lewis Morrison, chairman of British Medical Association (BMA) Scotland said: “All healthcare staff work in challenging, highly pressurised circumstances. It is no surprise that as a result there are sometimes issues and injuries that affect staff.
“Much more needs to be done to make working conditions better for doctors and indeed all healthcare staff.”
An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said: “We respect the right of anyone injured while at work to claim compensation. We look into each claim very carefully, listen to concerns and, if appropriate, compensate a claimant.
“The compensation money is not paid from NHS Grampian funds, but comes from its insurance scheme – the clinical negligence and other risks scheme (CNORIS) which is a risk transfer and financing scheme for NHS Scotland.”