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A ransomware incident is having a significant impact on the delivery of services at some of London’s busiest hospitals, the region’s health service said yesterday.
It applies to hospitals partnered with Synnovis – a provider of pathology services.
King’s College Hospital, Guy’s and St Thomas’ – including the Royal Brompton and the Evelina London Children’s Hospital – and primary care services are among those affected.
The incident has had a ‘major impact’ on the delivery of services, especially blood transfusions and test results.
It is thought to have happened on Monday, meaning some departments could not connect to a main server.
Some procedures have been cancelled or have been redirected to other National Health Service (NHS) providers as the hospitals try to establish what work can be carried out safely.
The NHS said emergency care continued to be available.
GP services across Bexley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Bromley, Southwark and Lambeth boroughs have also been affected.
A spokesperson from Synnovis said the company had sent in a ‘task force of IT experts’ to ‘fully assess’ the impact.
The NHS apologised for the inconvenience and said it was working with the National Cyber Security Centre to understand the impact.
One patient, Oliver Dowson, 70, was prepared for an operation from 6am at the Royal Brompton. He was told by a surgeon at about 12.30pm that it would not be going ahead.
“The staff on the ward didn’t seem to know what had happened, just that many patients were being told to go home and wait for a new date,” he said.
“I’ve been given a date for next Tuesday and am crossing my fingers.
“It’s not the first time that they have cancelled, but that was probably staff shortages in half-term week.”
A cyber incident in May 2017, which disrupted businesses and government services worldwide,
impacted more than a third of England’s 236 NHS trusts and led to the cancellation of an estimated 19,000 appointments in the span of a week.
A spokesperson for NHS England London region confirmed Synnovis was the victim of a ransomware cyber attack.
“Emergency care continues to be available, so patients should access services in the normal way, and patients should continue to attend appointments unless they are told otherwise,” they said.
“We will continue to provide updates about the impact on services and how patients can continue to get the care they need.”
A spokesperson for Synnovis said: “We are incredibly sorry for the inconvenience and upset this is causing to patients, service users and anyone else affected.
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