Suspected cybersecurity attack at Ascension Health impacting Chicago hospitals
CHICAGO — A suspected cybersecurity attack continues to impact a healthcare system in the Chicago area.
Ascension Health operates 140 hospitals nationwide. Ascension Saint Joseph Chicago Hospital is one of more than a dozen healthcare centers in the area that has been hit by a suspected cyberattack, disrupting clinical operations.
Ascension told WGN News Thursday evening its electronic medical records and phone systems are down nationwide, and elective procedures have been paused amid an ongoing cybersecurity incident that was first detected Wednesday.
“We are working around the clock with internal and external advisors to investigate, contain, and restore our systems following a thorough validation and screening process,” Ascension said in part of a statement Thursday.
Ascension’s full statement can be read at the bottom of this article.
The healthcare system said its investigation began immediately and they have hired a third-party group to help with remediation.
Lurie Children’s Hospital reactivating patient portal after network outage
Hospitals in other states like Kansas and Florida have reported significant impacts. Local media outlets have reported that ambulances are diverting patients to other hospitals.
The severity of the impact on Chicago’s Ascension hospitals is unclear as of Thursday evening.
The cyberattack comes just a few months after Lurie Children’s Hospital took its systems offline for six weeks after a suspected ransomware attack.
WGN News spoke to a cybersecurity expert who says the issue concerning Ascension Health bears the hallmarks of a ransomware attack. Healthcare systems are increasingly the targets of hackers because they have valuable data and provide critical care, so they have to get back up and running quickly, says Cyrus Walker, the CEO of Data Defenders, LLC.
“It makes them a rich and viable target for malicious actors for the financial gain that can come from the result of a successful attack,” Walker said. “It’s not, ‘If it’s going to happen, it’s when it happens, what is your capability to respond to it?'”
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Ascension said, “Our care teams are trained for these kinds of disruptions and have initiated procedures to ensure patient care delivery continues to be safe and as minimally impacted as possible.”
Ascension’s full statement:
“On May 8, Ascension detected unusual activity in our network systems. We have determined this is a cybersecurity incident. We are working around the clock with internal and external advisors to investigate, contain, and restore our systems following a thorough validation and screening process. Our investigation and restoration work will take time to complete, and we do not have a timeline for completion.
“Safely caring for patients remains our highest priority as we navigate this cybersecurity incident. We are actively supporting our ministries as they continue to provide safe, patient care with established downtime protocols and procedures, in which our workforce is well trained. It is expected that we will be utilizing downtime procedures for some time. Patients should bring to their appointment notes on their symptoms and a list of current medications and prescription numbers or the prescription bottles so their care team can call in medication needs to pharmacies.
“Systems that are currently unavailable include our electronic health records system, MyChart (which enables patients to view their medical records and communicate with their providers), some phone systems, and various systems utilized to order certain tests, procedures and medications. We have implemented established protocols and procedures to address these particular system disruptions in order to continue to provide safe care to patients. Out of an abundance of caution, however, some non-emergent elective procedures, tests and appointments have been temporarily paused while we work to bring systems back online. Our teams are working directly with any patient whose appointment or procedure will need to be rescheduled. We understand the frustration this may cause and sincerely regret any inconvenience to our patients.
“Due to downtime procedures, several hospitals are currently on diversion for emergency medical services in order to ensure emergency cases are triaged immediately. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please contact 911 and your local emergency services will bring you to the nearest hospital emergency room.
“We are beyond grateful for the hard work and dedication of our care teams across the system, and their continued commitment to our patients. We also thank our patients and our community for their continued support and patience during this time as we work through a diligent, time-intensive process to restore systems as quickly, and as safely, as possible. To ensure all patients, staff, and stakeholders are kept informed during this event, we will continue to post updated information on our website as it becomes available.”
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