Why Wellness Screenings Cover a Variety of Symptoms

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If any of your employees have asked (or you’ve ever wondered) why the COVID-19 wellness screenings cover so many different areas of employee health, here are some answers:

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1. There is no single symptom that everyone who has tested positive has shown. Even fever, which was originally thought to be universal, is not necessarily a symptom for all. However, since fever is still one of the most common symptoms, it is a primary means of detection for many businesses and doctors.

2. Based on the current knowledge and scientific evidence, TAG recommends screening for fever, cough, difficulty breathing/shortness of breath, chills repeated shaking, loss of smell, and diarrhea as primary symptoms; and headache, muscle pain, tiredness/fatigue, sore throat, and low oxygen levels as secondary symptoms. For secondary symptoms, individuals should have two or more to be considered potentially positive.

3. Oxygen (O2) levels below 90%, as measured with a medical grade oximeter, is a relatively new determined symptom that has been getting more attention as a pre-symptom indicator. Some coronavirus patients are unknowingly losing oxygen by silent hypoxia.

4. As the weather warms, allergies are also coming into play. Indeed, a headache; itchy, watery eyes; and drainage-related cough could be symptoms of seasonal allergies rather than of the coronavirus. This is another reason fever is a primary symptom to test for in COVID-19 detection, as fever is unlikely to be a symptom of seasonal allergies; and why the screening covers a range of symptoms.