On Saturday 22 June South Africa’s central lab, the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), suffered a cyberattack that severely delayed the processing of millions of blood tests. According to reports, the hackers used ransomware (encrypted software) to block access to vital data on the NHLS servers, and threatened to delete the data unless a ransom was paid.
Normally, the NHLS’s lab reports are automatically generated and sent to healthcare workers or made available on web view. But the hackers’ ransomware disabled that function. Sadly, the problem went far beyond being unable to get blood results from the lab. For almost six weeks, only emergency blood tests were taken, while other blood tests were put on hold. Viral Load testing was halted, and so was our ability to monitor our high-risk cases.
CHIVA Africa has worked incredibly hard over the years to convince children and caregivers that the only way we can determine if we’re putting the HIV “germ” to sleep, is by having their blood taken at the clinic so that healthcare workers can measure how much of the germ is in their blood. We’ve also spent countless hours mentoring healthcare workers about the importance of consistent Viral Load testing, and encouraging them to work with caregivers and children to ensure clinic appointments are not missed.
Due to this callous cyberattack, many caregivers and children who spent their precious time and money to get to their clinic appointment for a Viral Load blood test had to be turned away. For our ongoing cases who are poverty-stricken and living in extremely remote areas, a trip to the clinic is no small feat. The enormous sacrifices they made to attend that clinic appointment were completely wasted, and this experience has left them feeling jaded about future clinic appointments. What’s most disheartening and terrifying to us is the life-threatening consequences of this cyberattack. The cases we’re monitoring are now at risk of increased Viral Loads, and the next time their blood is tested it may be too late for CHIVA Africa to intervene. The lives of all patients relying on the public health system for blood tests to monitor their diseases are at risk – and some lives have already been lost due to the NHLS disruptions.
Over the next 6 months, we’re going to have to play catch-up and restore our relationships with our children and adolescents living with HIV (CALHIV) cases. We’ll need to convince the parents, caregivers and children who were affected by the NHLS cyberattack to return to the clinic for blood tests so that we can provide ongoing monitoring. The healthcare workers, who are now facing a huge backlog, will need extra encouragement from us to continue driving home the importance of attending clinic appointments to children and caregivers. The cyberattack on the NHLS is a stark reminder of how vulnerable children and adolescents living with HIV in very rural areas are, and how quickly an event outside of our control can derail our efforts to transform lives.
Fiona joined the Board at CHIVA Africa in 2019. Fiona studied Law at Oxford University and started her career as a Barrister practicing in Chancery chambers before moving into financial services.
Shaun became a trustee for CHIVA Africa in February 2019. He is a South African qualified lawyer and holds the position of Chief Legal Officer at Cairn Capital, a leading European asset manager.
Dr Mo Archary is a Paediatric Infectious Diseases Specialist at King Edward VIII Hospital, Durban and the University of KwaZulu-Natal: Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine.
Lauren joined the board in 2019, and is a lawyer by training and built a successful legal career in South Africa, specialising in public interest and media law. Lauren has lectured in media law, ethics and public interest law and takes a special interest in furthering the cause of women and those disadvantaged in South Africa.
Dr Moshal is the founder of CHIVA Africa and CHIVA South Africa and has chaired the CHIVA Africa Board of Trustees since its registration as a charity in 2009. Born and raised in South Africa, Karyn graduated in medicine from the University of Cape Town in 1988.