Information System Outage and Cyber Security Latest

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IT Outage

Information System Outage and Cyber Security Latest

Waikato DHB's information systems were affected by a cyber security incident on Tuesday 18 May 2021. This incident affected services at Waikato, Te Kuiti, Taumarunui, Thames and Tokoroa hospitals and our community-based services.

Although a number of significant services and systems have been restored, many are not yet operating to their full capacity.

The manual processes introduced across our services are still necessary in many areas which means all activities require additional time.

Please be patient with our staff while they work under these difficult circumstances.

There remains a great deal of work to be done across the DHB which will take time.

Regular news updates can be viewed on the Waikato DHB's Newsroom website. This is the official site for the most up-to-date reports on this issue.

Privacy

We are working with the Privacy Commissioner, National Cyber Security Centre and GCSB (Government Communications Security Bureau) as we investigate this incident.

Please be wary of unsolicited communication from people claiming to represent Waikato DHB, a government agency or another party. Do not open any emails or click on any links. Scamwatch at Consumer Protection (www.consumerprotection.govt.nz) or IDCARE (www.idcare.org) have more information on how to generally protect yourself online.

For further information about your privacy rights and responding to cyber incidents, you may also wish to visit the New Zealand Privacy Commissioner and CERT New Zealand websites.

If you have any questions about privacy of Waikato DHB patient data, contact us on 0800 561 234. This phone number is available for privacy queries only.

If you have general questions not related to privacy, call the main DHB number: (07) 839 8899.

Clinics, elective surgeries and mental health and addiction services

  • Those people with elective surgery or clinic appointments should assume their bookings will proceed unless they are contacted by us and told otherwise.
  • It is always helpful if patients with clinic appointments bring their appointment letters and any relevant information with them
  • Our mental health and addictions services bases are open and operational. Please drop into your usual service if you are concerned or need to contact your key worker.  
    As a reminder our Mental Health and Addictions base phone contacts are:
    • Crisis services  0800505050
    • He Toa Takatini (London Street)  0800302359
    • Rural South  0800154973
    • Rural North  0800080339
    • CADS  0800022436

Kaitiaki support

A roster has been set up to ensure Māori patients and their whanau have 24/7 access to Kaitiaki support.

Phone 021 806 171 or ask at the ward reception.

Key contacts

The DHB’s main line is available. Call volumes are high so please be patient. If your call drops out, please try again.

  • Waikato DHB general enquiries, including outpatient clinics: (07) 839 88 99 or 0800 276 216
  • Privacy questions: 0800 561 234
  • Non-urgent health questions: Healthline 0800 611 116
  • Emergencies: 111
  • Kaitiaki support: 021 806 171