Hairmyres IT worker helped thwart hackers
NHS praise heroes
A Hairmyres Hospital IT worker has been praised for his “heroic” efforts in countering the cyber attack on NHS Lanarkshire.
Robert Hall found himself coordinating the response at the East Kilbride hospital until the early hours.
The 42-year-old enterprise architect, from East Mains, was among the frontline staff who efficiently protected patient care and safety, thwarting the efforts of global hackers who disrupted organisations throughout the world with a ransomware cyber virus.
Robert said: “I was supposed to be picking up my four-year-old daughter Rachael from nursery but I realised that wasn’t going to happen. My mum had to get her and take her home because my wife Annette also works for the health board and was on call.
“But putting your family life on hold is something you have to do in a situation like this and all my colleagues showed the same commitment to staying at their desks and working to fix the problem.
“Anyone I phoned for help was ready to muck in right away.”
After global hackers crippled NHS services across Britain last Friday, Robert’s sleepless night was followed by a 16-hour shift the following day.
“I didn’t see my daughter for more than 10 minutes over the weekend but you just have to get on with it in a serious situation like this,” he admitted.
“We were well prepared to tackle an attack of this kind and our plan swung into action superbly as soon as we realised what was happening.”
NHS Lanarkshire chief executive Calum Campbell said: “All staff groups have shown outstanding commitment. I’m incredibly proud of all staff and partners for the team effort and resilience shown to overcome this.”