Patient gets biopsy in U.S. after she says she was denied in Ontario due to ransomware attack – CBC

Windsor Regional Hospital says it has been rescheduling postponed appointments

Nov 21, 2023

Amherstburg, Ont., resident Jennifer Duguay says she’s still in disbelief that she crossed the border to get a biopsy after she was denied care in Windsor due to ongoing hospital delays caused by a ransomware attack.

The 52-year-old said that after three weeks of dealing with a large rash on her chest, her family doctor told her she might have inflammatory breast cancer — a rare and aggressive type.

She said her doctor told her she would be referred to Windsor Regional Hospital (WRH) for an urgent biopsy. But days later, on Nov. 8, Duguay said the hospital’s Breast Health Centre called and told her it couldn’t be done because computer systems were still down from a cyberattack.

“[I was in] absolute shock that my doctor’s referring me for something that’s an emergency and I’m being told no? Absolute shock,” she said. “I was very upset … and I said, ‘This is my life. What are you talking about?'”

Duguay also said she was told she couldn’t go outside of the region to get the biopsy in London or Toronto.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/ransomware-attack-hospital-windsor-out-of-country-1.7030538