Pharmacies and GPs in South forced to turn patients away following 'unprecedented' IT outage
WATCH: Patients unable to get new prescriptions and commuters stuck in queues, as ITV News Meridian's Derek Johnson reports
A pharmacy in Dorset says it has had to turn some patients away from picking up their medication after a widespread IT issue, while a Kent doctor has described it as "unprecedented".
Tuckton Pharmacy in Bournemouth is one of many areas of the health sector that have been experiencing major IT problems on Friday, following an outage caused by a content update for Windows hosts.
Silas Agyemang, pharmacist and owner, said: "We largely depend on the connection to 'the spine' - that is what we call it. That is where all our prescriptions come from - about 95%."
"We have not been able to process any new prescriptions at all. We are having to explain to our patients the situation, and then asking most of them to come back.
"So far most of them have been helpful and understanding. What we can do is the previous prescriptions prior to this morning."
The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) confirmed the IT outage is disrupting community pharmacies, affecting community pharmacies' ability to access prescriptions and medicine deliveries.
A medical director representing Kent GPs says it is "unprecedented"
Around 3,700 GP practices may be impacted by the outage.
Dr Caroline Rickard, Medical Director for Kent and Medway Medical Committee said the situation was "critical".
She said: "For it to happen for this long - it is unprecedented - and on this scale.
"We operate entirely by this software to view your medical record, book appointments, cancel appointments, see what appointments you have coming up. We use it to check your test results and view your prescriptions."
Elsewhere in Sussex, Moatfield Surgery in East Grinstead reported this morning that it was running an emergency only service as it has been unable to access any medical records or notes.
At the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, a critical incident was declared after the issue affected the IT system staff use to deliver radiotherapy treatments.
The hospital has contacted patients who were due to have radiotherapy to reschedule appointments.
While radiotherapy services returned in the afternoon, the hospital says there is still some disruption to the radiotherapy system that may affect appointments running into next week.
Bosses urge patients to continue to attend their appointment unless they are contacted directly.
Meanwhile South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust says that while the majority of its IT unaffected, it does not have access to some NHS services.
A spokesperson said: “The majority of our infrastructure is unaffected and we are continuing to respond to patients. However, we do not have access to some external NHS services and have declared a Business Continuity Incident to manage our response.
“We are experiencing increased pressure across both our 999 and 111 services and prioritising our response to our most seriously ill and injured patients.
“We ask for the public’s support in only calling 999 in an emergency and by making use of alternatives including using NHS 111 Online for help and advice.”
A statement from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board reads: "We are working with all NHS providers and partners locally to minimise disruption for patients.
"You can help us to help you by only using our emergency departments for life or limb threatening issues.
"Your local pharmacy can help with many common minor conditions and Urgent Treatment Centres can help with urgent minor illnesses and injuries."
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