KU Topeka Hospital Experiences Network Outage From Ransomware Attack

Posted December 5, 2023

A ransomware attack on Nashville, Tenn.-based Ardent Health Services impacted 30 hospitals in the U.S. including The University of Kansas Health System St. Francis Campus in Topeka, causing a network outage for the hospital.

The Nov. 23 ransomware attack on Ardent Health affected 30 hospitals across six states including hospitals in Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Tennessee.

Following the attack many hospitals that were impacted hospitals diverted ambulances to other emergency rooms, and in the case of St. Francis in Topeka, left the hospital in a network outage and practiced standard downtime protocols.

“The University of Kansas Health System St. Francis Campus became aware of a network outage due to a potential security incident,” Director Marketing & Communications Ardent Health Services, Debbie Cluck wrote in a statement to WIBW. “Our team is working to assess the impact of this outage and restore access, and we will follow established downtime protocols as needed. Patient care has not been adversely impacted. As a precaution, our Emergency Room is currently on divert status.”

Ardent Health confirmed the incident as a ransomware attack on Nov. 27, according to a release.

The full extent of the attack has still yet to be determined. An investigation and restoration of EHR systems are being conducted, however, the range of patient health or financial data is unconfirmed.