Global IT Outage Disrupts NHS Appointment System

The NHS is experiencing widespread disruption due to a global IT outage affecting the EMIS appointment and patient record system. While GP practices are heavily impacted, critical emergency services remain unaffected. Contingency plans, such as using paper records and handwritten prescriptions, are being implemented to manage the disruption.

The NHS is grappling with a significant IT outage affecting its appointment and patient record system, known as EMIS. This has led to considerable disruption across the majority of GP practices.

Despite the technical issues, emergency services remain operational, ensuring that critical care is not compromised, the NHS confirmed.

The health service has activated long-standing contingency measures, including the use of paper patient records and handwritten prescriptions, to mitigate the impact on patients.