Patients sent home after cyberattack hits UK hospitals

Wirral University Teaching Hospital Trust, which runs several hospitals in northern England and Wales, declared a “major incident” amidst a debilitating cyber incident.

The incident, which local media reports began on Monday, took down hospital computer systems and has continued into Tuesday. According to the Trust, all outpatient appointments for November 26th were canceled.

“We urge all members of the public to attend the Emergency Department only for genuine emergencies,” the Trust said in a statement on its website.

Patients with “non-urgent issues” were advised to contact the UK's National Health Service (NHS) via its phone number, contact a general practitioner, and seek help elsewhere. The impacted Trust operates five hospitals and numerous clinics and serves patients in the Wirral Peninsula, North West England, and North Wales.

Reports from LiverpoolWorld claim that patients were turned away from their early appointments at some of the Trust's hospitals. Meanwhile, the Liverpool Echo reported that hospital staff members said, “The damage is huge.”

Patients who were already in the hospital learned about the news when the message was read via indoor speakers, with staff advising them to come back the next day. The attack reportedly knocked out the hospitals’ systems, barring medical staff from accessing patient records.

Earlier this year, a major ransomware attack knocked out several London hospitals after Qilin ransomware cartel hit NHS partner Synnovis labs. After failed negotiations, the attackers started leaking patient names, dates of birth, NHS numbers, descriptions of blood tests, and other information.

It was estimated that over 320 planned operations and nearly 1,300 outpatient appointments were postponed at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.