Blood tests issues lead to urgent call for blood donations in UK hospitals.
The National Health Service (NHS) in Britain is making a plea for blood donations due to a cyberattack that has impacted several hospitals. The hacking incident, believed to be the work of a Russian criminal group, has delayed blood group testing for patients, as per a statement released.
Hence, the NHS is asking for blood donations, specifically those with blood group O negative and O positive. These individuals are called universal donors since their blood can be safely given to any patient, making them highly desirable in emergency situations where testing time is limited. O positive blood type is the most common and is also in great demand.
Gail Miflin, the medical director of the NHS Blood and Transplant Service, said, "Patient safety is our foremost priority. If hospitals are unaware or lack information about a patient's blood group, it is safe to use blood group O."
The infection of ransomware in the past week affected large hospitals in London like King's College Hospital, St. Thomas' Hospital, and Evelina London Children's Hospital. Synnovis, a provider of laboratory tests for hospitals, was targeted in this attack. Authorities suppose that the Russian hacker group Qilin is responsible for the harmful act, motivated by financial gain. In ransomware attacks, data is encrypted and a ransom is asked for its release.
