Hospitals across Hertfordshire have recently been experiencing IT failures - but it has been confirmed they are not linked to a countrywide "cyber attack". 

It was reported yesterday (Friday, May 12) that hospitals - including Watford General, Hemel Hempstead and St Albans - had been facing issues with their phone and computer systems.

An error message appeared on The East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust website, which explained that people may struggle to phone the hospitals. 

Watford Observer:

An image of the error message that appeared on the East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust website​.

But a spokesperson for the West Herts Hospital NHS Trust said the failures are a "separate matter" to the malware attack which has caused disruption at 45 NHS sites across the country over the past couple of days. 

Chief operating officer Sally Tucker said: "Our IT issues were not caused by the cyber attack which has affected a number of NHS organisations across the country.

"Our core clinical IT services are operational and our hospital services are running thanks to the outstanding commitment of all our staff across the trust."

All services at Watford General Hospital are running normally, although it is not known when The East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust IT issues will be fixed.