GP services normal after NHS cyber attack

SERVICES at GP practices in Halton were running normally on Monday in the aftermath of the cyber attack which struck the NHS last week.

More than a dozen NHS organisations were hit on Friday, May 12, by a ‘ransomware’ attack.

An NHS Digital spokesman said last week the strike was not specifically targeted at the NHS and affected organisations from across a range of sectors and staff worked ‘around the clock’ to support the health sector.

An NHS Halton Clinical Commissing Group (CCG) spokesman confirmed to the Weekly News on Monday that no services in the borough were affected by the ransomware but ‘some’ services in GP practices were unavailable on Friday as they were getting updated by IT services as a precaution.

A statement on NHS Halton CCG’s website added: “GP practices in Halton will be open as usual on Monday, but many are still bringing their IT and clinical systems back online following the cyber attack which took place on Friday May, 12, and affected many organisations around the world. Some practices will not yet have full access to patient records, prescriptions, appointment systems and in some cases telephone systems.

“However, all GP practices will be using well-tested contingency plans to ensure that services can continue to be provided.

“The NHS is asking patients to continue to use the NHS wisely and remember that they can seek help and advice from a range of other sources, such as pharmacies or 111.”

A total of 47 NHS organisations have been affected with malware in their system.