Australians urged to come together to beat COVID-19

graphic with words Want to help beat Covid-19 now?

Swinburne has partnered with Arq group to launch an online tool to help track the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Australia.

The goal is to have five million Australians fill out a symptom tracker daily at beatcovid19now.org

The survey tool is designed for people who are healthy or unwell, including with symptoms of COVID-19.

All you need to do is provide your postcode and fill in the survey, you are not required to input any other information that would otherwise identify you.

The technology behind the symptom tracker was developed by Arq Group, a leading Australian digital services provider, which has volunteered its services and expertise to help beat COVID-19.

The science behind the tracker was developed by Swinburne Professors Richard Osborne and Matthew Bailes, who combined their expertise in public health and astrophysics and organised a hackathon to prototype the concept.

Based on the initial data, the intention is to further develop the tool and make it available internationally, to support the global effort to combat health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Swinburne’s Professor Richard Osborne says, “Reliable and accurate data is more important now than ever to ensure we know as much as we can about this disease and its spread so that the authorities can take appropriate steps to help beat it. Filling out the survey only takes a few minutes a day and provides vital information to experts battling the virus.

“This platform is not about providing medical advice but giving a valuable new tool to experts trying to track and contain this virus. Anyone who is concerned that they may have been exposed to the virus should contact the National Coronavirus Hotline on 1800

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