Interactive COVID-19 self-assessment tool now online

With increasing severity of the COVID-19 outbreak, the province has launched an interactive self-assessment series of questions to help inform those who are concerned they may have contracted COVID-19.

In a matter of seconds, this tool will help people determine if they are negative, or it will provide them with guidance on where to seek care based on their needs.

Use of the self-assessment provides the province with real-time data on the number and geography of users who are told to seek care, self-isolate or to monitor for symptoms. This data will help inform Ontario’s ongoing response in order to keep individuals and families safe.

“I encourage anyone who may have been exposed to COVID-19, have symptoms or may have travelled outside of Canada to first self-isolate and then take a few seconds to complete our new online assessment tool,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, in a media release. “This easy-to-use tool, developed with guidance from Dr. Williams, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, is a great first step in that process. By answering a few questions, Ontarians will be able to make informed choices about what to do, while the province collects real-time data to enhance our ongoing response.”

The tool guides individuals through a series of questions and, based on their responses, users are provided direction on what action to take. These next steps could include: continue to practice social distancing; self-isolate; call a primary care provider or Telehealth Ontario; or in the case of symptoms such as severe difficulty breathing or severe chest pain, call 911 or go to the emergency department.

Those people whose self-assessment shows they may have COVID-19 will be advised to call their primary care provider, who can conduct a virtual assessment by phone or other technology. People can also call Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000 (24/7), where they can speak to a health care professional about their symptoms.

In some cases, based on the virtual assessment, individuals may be referred by their primary care provider or Telehealth Ontario to one of the province’s 58 assessment centres for an in-person assessment. These centres, which are by referral only, are helping to ease the pressures on hospital emergency departments using innovative care models, including in some cases drive-thru testing.

Click here to visit Ontario’s COVID-19 self assessment website page. 

QUICK FACTS
– Ontarians should be practising social distancing to reduce their exposure to other people. Avoid close contact (within 2 metres) with people outside of your immediate families.
– Anyone who has travelled outside of Canada should:
– Self-isolate for 14 days when they return. People who are self-isolating should not go to work.
– Monitor themselves for symptoms of the 2019 novel coronavirus for 14 days after returning to Canada.
– Contact their primary care provider or Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000 if they experience symptoms of the 2019 novel coronavirus.
– To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, wash your hands often, cough and sneeze into your sleeve or a tissue, and stay home if you are feeling sick.