How Microsoft outage has affected key public services in the UK

Hospitals, GPs, police forces and property agents across the UK have been affected by the global Microsoft outage. The NHS faced serious and widespread disruption on Friday due to the issue, with hundreds of hospitals, GP surgeries and community health services impacted. The NHS.net Connect system, used by over 1 million NHS staff for emails, meetings, calendars, file access and other tasks, is powered by Microsoft.

The outage caused problems for staff accessing emails, performing basic duties, and sending and receiving patient data, which is essential for healthcare delivery. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) also experienced email problems, leading some staff to resort to using paper records. Some NHS operations and appointments were cancelled, and patients were asked to attend as usual unless advised otherwise.

The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, which relies on Microsoft platforms like Outlook for email, saw court and tribunal cases cancelled or delayed. In the property industry, old-fashioned direct communication, such as phone calls and hand-delivered documents, compensated for the lack of email. Some police forces reported that their emergency lines remained operational, but the lack of email for reporting crimes and concerns caused inconveniences.