The state clinical establishment regulatory commission on Monday asked a private hospital in Midnapore town, which did not shift a grievously injured youth to a hospital with better facilities, to pay Rs 2 lakh as interim compensation to the family of the youth who died subsequently.

The commission asked the family to approach the West Bengal Medical Council with their complaint of medical negligence. If the council passed an order in the family’s favour, they can go back to the commission, which will then decide on the final compensation, said retired judge Asim Banerjee, the chairperson of the commission.

The commission cannot probe complaints of medical negligence.

“Sayandeb Bhunia, 20, was admitted to St Joseph’s Hospital around 5.30pm on April 15. He suffered grievous injuries in a bike accident. We saw the X-ray report. The portion above his knees had fractured,” said Banerjee.

“The family alleged there was no treatment during the golden hour after the accident. The youth was given only painkillers.”

Representatives of St Joseph’s Hospital told the commission on Monday that a resident medical officer attended to the patient and a senior doctor examined him later. “The hospital said the patient was admitted at 5.35pm and the resident medical officer treated him. The hospital then informed a senior doctor, who is also an associate professor at Midnapore Medical College. The senior doctor went to the hospital at 9.30pm, four hours after admission,” said Banerjee.

“The patient was practically without any treatment for four hours. The youth had vomited once. The senior doctor who examined him said the patient should be shifted to a better set-up if he vomited again. The hospital told us the patient’s condition was stable till 8.30am the next day, after which he slipped into a coma,” said Banerjee.

The commission asked the hospital why it did not shift the youth to a better hospital. “The hospital said they had told the family that the patient needed to be shifted to a place with better facilities. But the patient’s mother said she could not take a decision till her husband came. We said it was natural for her to be not able to take a decision alone at that time,” said Banerjee.

“The hospital should have been more humanitarian in its approach and shifted the patient to a place with advanced facilities. They could have shifted him to Midnapore Medical College,” the chairperson said.

“We have ordered St Joseph’s Hospital to pay Rs 2 lakh to the family as interim compensation,” Banerjee said.

Also on Monday, the commission asked Medica Superspecialty Hospital to offer a discount of Rs 50,000 to a person who was charged exorbitant rates for pathological tests when he was treated at the hospital for Covid.