This online test can help you determine if you are at risk of contracting coronavirus

The online test developed by Apollo chain of hospitals is based on WHO guidelines and gives recommendations based on symptoms and medical history.

Representational image | Bloomberg

New Delhi: The Apollo chain of hospitals has come out with an online self-assessment test that can help people perform a preliminary test at home for COVID-19. The test is available on Apollo’s website and the results can determine whether the risk of contracting the infection is low, medium of high.

The test is based on the guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Home and Family Welfare (MHFW), Government of India.

The questionnaire asks six to seven successive questions about an individual’s symptoms, travel history, contact with someone with a travel history and also changes in symptoms over time.

A screenshot of the online self-assessment test

It first performs a filter by age — the older a person is, the more likely they are to be immunocompromised and are at a higher risk of death. The same goes for the gender question as men are much more likely to contract COVID-19 than women.

The test then asks users to log in body temperature, select blanket symptoms followed by more specific COVID-19 symptoms and travel and contact history with coronavirus patients. It also checks for changes like improvement in or worsening of symptoms and asks for pre-existing conditions. According to studies, COVID-19 is more likely to be fatal to individuals with cardiovascular diseases, hypertension and diabetes.

The results give different recommendations for different risk levels of contracting the infection, which include self-isolation, medical attention, online consultations and social distancing. Low risk patients are advised to stay home, practice isolation and monitor symptoms. Those with a medium risk are asked to consult a physician while high-risk patients are urged to seek immediate medical attention and prepare to get tested at a hospital.

The results page also provides basic preventive and precautionary measures in line with what authorities from the WHO and MHFW have advised. These include washing hands, maintaining social distance, avoiding touching the face, practising respiratory hygiene and knowing when to seek medical care.