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Efforts under way to restore IT systems at two Galway hospitals

Galway University Hospital was one of two hospitals in the region affected by a network failure yesterday
Galway University Hospital was one of two hospitals in the region affected by a network failure yesterday

The HSE's Saolta University Health Care Group has said efforts are continuing to fully restore computer systems at public hospitals in Galway, following a breakdown in the IT infrastructure.

A network failure at Galway University Hospital and Merlin Park University Hospital yesterday led to the postponement of a number of outpatient appointments.

Phone lines were down for most of the day and internal computer communications failed. Several departments had to revert to manual data gathering and monitoring practices.

Contingency plans were put in place to deal with the communications failure. The hospitals say this included the provision of additional staff to assist with patient care.

The Saolta Group said no new issues have been reported today and all phone lines are now operational again. A problem remains with internet connections and wi-fi services. This is leading to a delay in accessing patient information.

A review into the systems failure and the response to it is under way.

Patients are being advised to keep scheduled outpatient appointments tomorrow.