Royal Sussex: Critical incident declared after computer system error

The hospital in Brighton started having problems on Saturday evening which forced ambulances to divert to A&E departments in Worthing and Redhill.

The computer system failure meant phone lines and diagnostic equipment such as X-ray machines and blood tests were not working.

Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath had the same IT problem.

The critical incident meant ambulances had to divert to Redhill and Worthing (Image: Andrew Gardner/The Argus)

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust confirmed that it declared a critical incident last night.

But ambulances are now returning to A&E at both hospitals as computer systems are fixed.

A spokesman for the trust said: “Most IT and communications systems are now being brought back online across the trust after problems were encountered on Saturday evening.

“That progress has meant that the agreement to divert ambulances away from Brighton and Haywards Health has been stopped.

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“We ask that people continue to use NHS services wisely and only use emergency services when necessary.

“Despite the positive progress there is still work under way to reactivate some remaining systems and to troubleshoot potential issues today.

“Given that frontline teams may still encounter more challenges than normal throughout the day – your patience and continued support is greatly appreciated. 

“We apologise to anyone affected by the disruption this weekend – patients, families, our UHSussex colleagues and NHS teams in other organisations.”

IT systems are being fixed at the Royal Sussex (Image: Andrew Gardner | The Argus)

The Argus understands there was a problem in the hospital’s server room.

East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service was called to the hospital on Saturday afternoon.

A spokeswoman said: “We were called at 4.45pm to reports of a fire in Eastern Road, Brighton.

"Crews from Preston Circus and Roedean attended. There was no fire but overheating caused by overheated equipment.

"Crews assisted with ventilation and left the scene at 6.29pm."

The Trust confirmed at 3pm that it was bringing its clinical and communications system back into operation.

A spokesman added: "However, some are still to be reactivated, while others are working intermittently, or remain fragile. 

"We ask that people continue to use NHS services wisely at this time, and only use emergency services when necessary.

"There is still work to do to normalise all of our systems, and our teams may still encounter more challenges than normal throughout the day – your patience and continued support is greatly appreciated."