Mansfield’s King’s Mill Hospital shut down all computers and Nottingham’s QMC and City hospitals also disconnected some systems amid a national ‘ransomware’ cyber attack on the NHS.
NHS services across England have been hit by either IT failure or ‘ransomware’ – which disables access to data and displays a message demanding money for the recovery of files.
At least 16 NHS organisations in England have reportedly been affected by the attack, which NHS England has declared a major incident. Although Nottinghamshire has also been affected, most appointments or operations are going ahead as normal.
Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre and City Hospitals are not directly affected, but shut down some systems on Friday as a precaution.
However, patients with CT, ultrasound or MRI scan appointments at King’s Mill Hospital over the weekend are being asked not to attend.
A spokesman for King’s Mill Hospital’s Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust said staff had been told to shut down all computers on Friday afternoon to prevent or reduce the impact of any hack, but stressed the hospital is open as normal.
King’s Mill, near Mansfield, is one of the largest hospitals in the region outside of Nottingham.
A spokesman from the Trust that runs the Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital said on Friday afternoon ‘immediate measures’ had been taken at both major hospitals, but did not initially elaborate.
A trust spokesman said: “NUH is not affected by the national cyber security attack but has taken immediate measures to secure ICT systems.”
The trust later added in a statement: “There has been minimal impact on our hospitals as a result of the NHS cyber security attack. However, to minimise the security of our ICT systems, we have disconnected some internal systems as a precaution.
“These systems are starting to come back online, however we are not receiving external emails.
“Please telephone instead of email this weekend if you need to get in touch about your appointment or operation. The main switchboard number is 0115 924 9924.
“No operations or appointments have been cancelled. Please therefore attend hospital as normal if you have an appointment or operation planned over the coming days.”
A spokesman for Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust said on Friday afternoon: “All our computer systems at King’s Mill are shut down as a precaution although A&E remains open.
“We’d ask patients to use A&E wisely; the NHS nationally is investigating the full extent of the attack.
“NHS Digital is dealing with the problem at a national level.”
The trust later added via Twitter: “If you have a CT, ultrasound or MRI scan with us over the w/e, pls don’t attend. If services resume will call you.
“If you have an outpatient appointment (not a scan) with us over the w/e, pls attend as normal unless we contact you.”
The spokesperson also confirmed that all staff, clinical and non-clinical, were told on Friday afternoon not to use IT systems and run on pen and paper until further notice.
A National Cyber Security Centre spokesman said: “We are aware of the cyber incident and we are working with NHS Digital and the National Crime Agency to investigate.”
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, which delivers the county’s mental health services, has tweeted to say it is also having problems with its phone lines and emails.
#nhscyberattack Ransonware takes over NHS computers: https://t.co/xFlC0Y7YCp pic.twitter.com/aqmzIr5Exg
— Dr Irfan Malik (@dr_irfanmalik) May 12, 2017
Nottingham CityCare Partnership has been affected and issued a statement to the Nottingham Post which said: “We have been affected and all IT systems have been shut down.
“We have established alternative means of contact for patients under our care as part of our business continuity plan.”
A statement from NHS Digital said: “A number of NHS organisations have reported to NHS Digital that they have been affected by a ‘ransomware’ attack.
“The investigation is at an early stage but we believe the malware variant is Wanna Decryptor.
“This attack was not specifically targeted at the NHS and is affecting organisations from across a range of sectors.
“At this stage we do not have any evidence that patient data has been accessed.
“NHS Digital is working closely with the National Cyber Security Centre, the Department of Health and NHS England to support affected organisations and ensure patient safety is protected.
“Our focus is on supporting organisations to manage the incident swiftly and decisively, but we will continue to communicate with NHS colleagues and will share more information as it becomes available.”
