Family Health West Hospital in Fruita was the target of a cyberattack on Tuesday morning, leading the facility to immediately shut down its electronic systems. Despite this, a hospital spokesperson quickly confirmed that patient care has not been impacted and is not expected to be. This continuous level of service is attributed to the staff’s ability to swiftly transition to manual operations for all necessary functions.
In a press release issued later that afternoon, the facility provided reassuring details about the attack’s scope. As of Tuesday, there was no evidence that any sensitive patient or employee data had been lost or encrypted, suggesting that all hostile attempts were successfully blocked. The hospital’s IT department has initiated a meticulous process: each system will be isolated for a thorough forensic review, and as an added layer of security, outside cybersecurity experts will double-check the integrity of the systems before they are brought back online.
“Our top priority is protecting the sensitive information entrusted to us by our patients, staff and community,” stated Family Health West IT Senior Director Derek Biddle. He emphasized a cautious approach to confirming that all systems are entirely secure and fully operational before restoration. The hospital also clarified that this was an isolated incident, assuring the public that no other hospitals within Mesa County were affected. In response, Community Hospital’s CEO, Chris Thomas, noted their staff took proactive measures, such as disconnecting service connections with Family Health West for things like radiology, to ensure the attack could not expand to their system. Intermountain Health St. Mary’s Regional Hospital also verified the incident was isolated and posed no threat to their operations.
Family Health West’s rapid and successful containment of the incident may be influenced by its prior experience with large-scale security issues. The hospital, along with others in the area, was impacted by the February 2024 cyberattack on Change Healthcare, a third-party platform used for processing medical bills. That previous, months-long freeze significantly affected hospital finances nationwide. Since this current incident is a direct attack on the hospital’s core systems rather than a contracted service, the full comparison and resulting impact remain uncertain.
The hospital has not yet set a timeline for when they will be able to declare that the security threat has been completely eliminated. According to their press release, they are committed to providing updates to the community as new information becomes available. For now, the focus remains on the methodical, secure restoration of their electronic services to ensure the long-term protection of sensitive data.
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