The Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Trust in Northwest England is currently dealing with a significant cyber security incident that has forced several hospitals to abandon their digital systems in favor of pen and paper operations. After detecting suspicious activity, the Trust isolated their IT systems to prevent potential spread of the threat.
The incident is affecting multiple facilities, including Arrowe Park Hospital, Clatterbridge Hospital, and Wirral Women and Children’s Hospital. While services remain available, some scheduled appointments and procedures have been postponed, and patients are being advised to bring their appointment letters when visiting.
Emergency departments have modified their operations, now focusing primarily on serious and life-threatening conditions such as chest pains, choking, strokes, and severe blood loss. Less urgent cases are being directed to urgent treatment centers to manage the flow of patients, though longer waiting times are expected across all services.
While the Trust hasn’t explicitly confirmed the nature of the attack, their response of isolating systems and taking them offline is often indicative of ransomware incidents. They are currently working with national cyber security services to restore normal operations.
The situation underscores the healthcare sector’s increasing vulnerability to cyber attacks and demonstrates how quickly modern hospitals must adapt when their digital infrastructure is compromised. The Trust continues to provide emergency services while working to resolve the incident, though they warn of extended waiting times for unplanned treatments.
