Serious symptoms advice
You should go to hospital or call Triple Zero (000) if you have severe symptoms like:
- difficulty breathing even when walking around the house
- suddenly find it hard to breath or your breathing has gotten worse
- coughing up blood
- bad chest pain
- collapsing or fainting
- feeling cold and sweaty, with pale or blotchy skin
- have a rash that looks like small bruises or bleeding under the skin and doesn’t fade when you roll a glass over it
- feeling agitated, confused or very drowsy
- stopping urinating or are urinating much less than usual
Remember that wherever you live, whatever your health conditions and whatever your vaccination status, you’ll be cared for if you get COVID-19.
How to connect to care
- You can call the 24/7 National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 to speak with a healthcare professional. Press 8 if you need an interpreter.
- Visit the COVID-19 Online Symptom Checker at https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/symptom-checker
Most people who are fully vaccinated will be able to care for themselves at home, like you would for other viruses.
You may have symptoms like a fever, cough, headache or a sore throat. You will probably feel unwell for a day or 2, and then start to feel better. Some fully vaccinated people will have no symptoms at all.
It is possible to have mild symptoms at the start of your illness, but become sicker over time.
It is a clinical self-assessment tool designed to help you understand what healthcare you may need based on your symptoms and other risk factors.
Less urgent care options
- 134 COVID (13 42 68) for testing and other COVID-19 advice
- 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) for confidential health advice from a registered nurse
- Contact your local GP
Go to the I have COVID Queensland Health website, and follow five simple steps to prepare yourself if you have COVID-19.
If you learn you have COVID-19 using a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) at home, report your positive RAT result to Queensland Health.
- Visit the COVID-19 Online Symptom Checker at https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/symptom-checker; or
- You can call the 24/7 National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 to speak with a healthcare professional. Press 8 if you need an interpreter.
Oral medicines are available for people with COVID-19 who are at high risk of developing severe illness. These medicines can reduce the need to go to hospital.
You will be eligible to get a script from your doctor if you have tested positive to COVID-19 AND are:
- 70 years of age or older
- 50 years of age or older, with two other risk factors
- you identify as a person of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin, are 30 years of age or older with two other risk factors
- 18 years or older and immunocompromised.
Risk factors include:
- any COVID-19 symptoms
- living in residential aged care
- living with a disability
- living remotely
- diabetes
- being overweight
- serious heart disease
- chronic respiratory disease
- chronic kidney disease
- a number of other serious health problems.
Eligible people should contact their GP or other treating doctor as soon as possible after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis to arrange a script for treatment. This can be arranged via a telehealth consultation.
Treatment needs to start within five days of developing symptoms or testing positive to COVID-19.
Search Find a Pharmacy for your nearest community pharmacy offering Lagevrio or Paxlovid antiviral medication, as per your doctor’s prescribing advice.
Visit Queensland Health website for more.
Our Virtual COVID-19 Hospital in the Home (HITH) program supports the health needs of COVID-19 patients with moderate level illness. It is designed for people who are well enough to remain at home with COVID-19 but are at higher risk because of additional health concerns.
Our team of doctors and nurses keep regular contact with patients through phone calls or telehealth videoconferencing, while in-home patient monitoring devices can also be used to remotely monitor patient observations and quickly respond to any signs of deterioration.
If we have any concerns about a person’s health and we need to perform an in-person review, our staff will contact them to arrange an assessment at our HITH COVID-19 clinic at Ipswich Hospital. Paediatric patients under 16 years of age are now referred to Children's Health Queensland for management as required.
COVID-19 is now circulating widely in Queensland.
It’s likely that most Queenslanders will either get COVID-19, or be directly exposed to someone who has COVID-19.
Now is the time to Get COVID-Ready.
To prepare for COVID-19 in your household, visit the Get COVID-Ready webpage.
To find out what to do if you get a positive COVID-19 test result, visit the I Have COVID webpage. This page explains home isolation, medical care and where to get help.