healthdirect COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker now available in 11 languages

In an Australian-first, Healthdirect Australia has launched the COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker in 10 additional languages, ahead of the festive season and rising COVID-19 cases.

The COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker helps users check their COVID-19 symptoms and receive advice on the type of care they need. It also helps them find out if they may be eligible for COVID-19 antiviral treatment and provides advice about contacting their GP for further assessment.

It is available in 11 languages, including Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), English, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese.

First developed in March 2020, the COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker has been used nearly 14 million times to help people understand their symptoms and provide advice regarding the most appropriate care.

"Keeping our families, friends and community safe has been top of mind while navigating the pandemic and it’s important to keep up the preventive behaviours such as wearing a mask in crowded places, washing hands and staying home when sick. If you have symptoms of COVID-19 it’s still important to test yourself to confirm infection. If you are sick, this tool is an easy way to check your symptoms and know the type of care you need — which for most people with mild symptoms will be to stay at home, stay hydrated and rest.

"For those with underlying health conditions, are elderly or otherwise vulnerable to suffering more severe COVID-19 symptoms, the COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker connects them with information and advice to contact their GP for further assessment and to help with accessing the appropriate treatment, which may include oral antiviral medication.

"It is important to know that if you are eligible for COVID-19 treatment, you need to start the medication within five days of your first symptoms. Providing this tool in more languages will help more people know if they’re eligible for antiviral treatment and how to get it", says Dr Luckraj.

Developing the multilingual COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker

The COVID-19 Symptom Checker and Antiviral Eligibility Checker has been a trusted and key resource for Australians seeking reassurance or guidance on next steps if they develop COVID or flu-like symptoms.

Offering the evidence-based tool in multiple languages assists more people in the community to get the right care and understand if they are eligible for life-saving antiviral treatment.

"We analysed data from multilingual callers to our helplines and used the top 10 languages to inform the language choices for the multilingual COVID-19 Symptom and Antiviral Eligibility Checker.

Translating a clinical tool, while ensuring both clinical and linguistic efficacy and accuracy, was a challenging task, involving significant input from a range of official and community stakeholders to ensure that the core clinical messages were meaningfully and accurately shared. Significant consultation, technical work and development has now resulted in an easy-to-use, clinically accurate health tool.

The tool has evolved with the pandemic, expanding to include eligibility for COVID-19 antiviral treatment in March 2022, continuing to use an evidence based approach and adapting changing national clinical guidelines from the National COVID-19 Clinical Evidence Taskforce.

"We continue to look at ways to build upon and expand our services as part of our vision to create a healthier Australia," concludes Dr Luckraj.