A hospital in central Henan Province has paid 35,000 yuan (US$5,279) in compensation to the family of a man who died of heart attack after being left to wait nearly six hours outside an examination room.

Treatment was never given to 40-year-old Meng Deying, who was admitted to the Nanyang City No.1 People's Hospital at 9am after he felt chest pains and had difficulty in breathing last Friday, reported Orient Today.

Meng was told to undergo a series of examinations first by a chief doctor, surnamed Ding, who declined Meng's wife's request to prescribe some medicine to temporarily get his condition under control, the newspaper said.

Despite his condition worsening, Meng had to wait for hours as each examination room was full and patients were made to wait on chairs or in queues.

It wasn't until Meng collapsed in front of the ultrasound room on the third floor - after finishing a blood test - that staff came to his aid, said Meng's wife.

Meng lay on the floor with an examination form still in hand. He was ruled to have died of a cardiac arrest at 2:30pm, nearly six hours after he had entered the hospital.

Hospital officials claimed that they were not liable for Meng's death as the tests were necessary for an accurate diagnosis. However, they admitted priority should be given to patients in an -emergency and thus agreed on the compensation to express their condolences.

(Xinhua News Agency November 13, 2010)