A cyberattack forced WUTH to postpone medical operations

One of the UK’s most prominent healthcare institutions, Wirral University Teaching Hospital (WUTH), became the subject of a cyberattack that compromised its standard operation.

Reports revealed that the incident caused a systems outage, leading to postponed appointments and scheduled procedures. The affected entity is a public healthcare organisation in the United Kingdom that operates the Clatterbridge Hospital, Arrowe Park Hospital, and Wirral Women and Children’s Hospital.

 

The WUTH cybersecurity incident resulted in delays and service disruptions.

 

The cyberattack required WUTH to take down some IT systems and switch to manual operations. However, these preventive measures resulted in service delays and disruptions.

Still, the institution assured concerned parties that it had already deployed a team to address the issue after a major incident was declared at the Trust earlier this week. An announcement also explained that the impacted entity immediately isolated its systems after detecting the suspicious activity.

It also explained that it will revert to pen-and-paper processes while its IT systems are online to continue standard operations. However, scheduled appointments and procedures are postponed and rescheduled even though hospital services remain available. On the other hand, waiting times for emergency treatment have increased.

The hospital also advised the public to visit its emergency department only if they have a legitimate emergency to avoid unnecessary workload for the staff. An email from WUTH to staff members earlier this week informed them of the unwanted situation and that restoring the systems would take a while.

They also expect the incident to cause severe operational alterations, as everything is done electronically within the institution. Hence, there is no access to records, results, or anything stored digitally, forcing the workforce to do everything manually.

Patients visiting the healthcare provider were also advised that X-rays, treatments, and surgeries are currently unavailable, and there’s no ETA for when the hospital will return to normal operations.

This cybersecurity incident could affect the hospital’s daily operations and human lives, as individuals who need urgent care will be forced to transfer or wait for a substantial amount of time.

This incident is a developing story. As of now, no known ransomware group have claimed responsibility for the alleged cyberattack.