Many rural and safety-net hospitals across the country face significant financial challenges – ranging from low patient volumes, to rising supply costs, and federal policy changes that place additional strains on hospital finances. Adding to those pressures is the growing threat of ransomware attacks, which can bring hospital operations to a standstill by disrupting electronic health records, imaging equipment, lab testing workflows, appointment systems, and other essential aspects of patient care. The resulting financial hit may force hospitals to economize in ways that threaten patient access and quality of care.

With a new $2.4 million award from the National Institutes of Health, researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health (SPH) will undertake the first study to examine the long-term effects of ransomware attacks on rural and safety-net hospitals. Led by SPH Associate Professor Hannah Neprash, the project will investigate how ransomware attacks affect these hospitals and the patient populations that they serve.

“Ransomware attacks continue to be a major challenge for hospitals and other health care providers in the United States,” said Neprash. “This project will quantify the damage that ransomware attacks cause and move toward identifying ways to safeguard care delivery and patient safety when hospitals face cyberattacks.”

To conduct the study, the research team will combine nationwide Medicare data with the Tracking Healthcare Ransomware Events and Traits Database, a first-of-its-kind database developed by Neprash and her colleagues to systematically track ransomware attacks on U.S. health care delivery organizations. Researchers will also field a novel survey of physicians at hospitals that have experienced ransomware attacks. Results from this survey will help to minimize the harm of future cyberattacks by identifying best practices that promote hospital functioning and care delivery during an attack.

“By identifying what helps hospitals continue delivering safe, effective care during and after an attack, we hope this research will help rural and safety-net hospitals strengthen their preparedness for future cyberattacks,” said Neprash.