Cyberattack at Ascension affecting Tennessee hospitals
Ascension has several hospitals across Middle Tennessee.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WMSV) – A major cyber security breach at Ascension is impacting doctors’ abilities to respond to emergencies and some patients are having their appointments postponed, according to the medical group.
Ascension detected unusual activity in its network systems on Wednesday, May 8 and said it is working “around the clock with internal and external advisors to investigate.”
The medical group said their electronic health records system and MyChart, which allows patients to see their records and communicate with providers, are down. Phone systems and various systems used to order tests procedures and medications are also offline due to the cyberattack.
Ascension has several hospitals in Middle Tennessee, including Ascension St. Thomas West and Midtown in Nashville, and Ascension St. Thomas Rutherford in Murfreesboro.
Michelle Durham when to the St. Thomas Midtown emergency room on Wednesday and said she never expected to be told they couldn’t even do a CT scan because of the cyberattack.
“It’s very concerning when you are waiting for hours and hours just waiting on stuff to even get results of anything,” Durham said. “It’s a little aggravating.”
Durham said it is like they are, “going back to dinosaur days,” with the backup paper chart systems.
The Vanderbilt Health System is experiencing a higher-than-normal influx of patients due to the ongoing issues at Ascension, according to a spokesperson.
Patients who attend appointments at Ascension hospitals should bring 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.
“Our investigation and restoration work will take time to complete, and we do not have a timeline for completion,” the medical group said in a statement.
For more information, visit Ascension’s website.
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