Keynote: Are You Truly Prepared, or Do You Just Think You Are? Cyber Triage in Healthcare During the First Hour of a Cyberattack

During the first hour of a cyberattack, healthcare leaders must make decisions that can directly affect continuity of patient care, the availability
of critical systems and the overall operation of their institutions. Which processes should take priority? Who is responsible for making critical decisions? How can IT, clinical and management responsibilities be coordinated when every minute counts?
The triage approach, widely used in healthcare, can also be applied to cybersecurity incident response: interventions must be prioritised based on risks, affected systems and potential consequences. But how effectively do an organisation's incident
response and business continuity plans work in practice?
The presentation explores how scenario-based crisis simulations, known as Tabletop Exercises (TTX), can help organisations anticipate critical decision-making situations, clarify roles and responsibilities, and test cross-functional coordination. Through
practical examples, it demonstrates how gaps in organisational preparedness can be identified before a real cyberattack occurs, and how regular exercises can help maintain the safe and uninterrupted delivery of healthcare services.