Updated 27.1.2023

For information about Vaccinations, see page Vaccinations against Coronavirus

 

Contents:

• If you suspect you have coronavirus disease
• If you need help or treatment from a professional
• The addresses for testing and hubs
• Updated Covid-19 testing instructions for families with children
• Instruction to a person tested for coronavirus disease
• Multilingual counselling

 

If you suspect you have coronavirus disease

The symptoms of coronavirus disease are similar to the flu and stomach upset. Symptoms of the infection may include fever, cough, headache, nausea, diarrhea, unusual tiredness, muscle pain, sore throat, runny nose, shortness of breath, or loss of smell or taste.

If you have symptoms of the coronavirus disease, stay at home until you get better.  

If you want, you can take an antigen test you can buy at the store or pharmacy. A positive home test result does not usually need to be confirmed by an official test. If you get a positive test result in your home test, stay at home until the symptoms ease significantly

From now on, you should sign up for a official coronavirus test only if

• you are pregnant. If corona test is positive, contact your maternity clinic immediately.
• you are part of an at-risk group for severe coronavirus disease
• you are in conscript service and the Finnish Defense Forces has guided you to the test
• you suspect that you belong to the target group of the Paxlovid medication (information about Paxlovid in Finnish)
  
  The temporary amendment to the Health Insurance Act, pertaining specifically to the infectious disease allowance, has ceased to apply on 31.12.2022. As of 1 January 2023, a decision issued by a doctor responsible for infectious disease control is required to qualify for infectious disease allowance. It will no longer be possible to qualify for infectious disease allowance on the basis of a certificate issued by some other doctor, nurse or public health nurse. you are a social and health care worker or student who works with clients or patients in social welfare and health care services

As a rule individuals who have had the coronavirus disease in the past two months are not tested.

If you have serious symptoms, you should still seek medical attention to assess the need for treatment. See instructions: If you need help or treatment from a professional

You can get tested for a coronavirus without an appointment at emergency health care clinics of Kontinkangas, Tuira, Haukipudas, Oulunsalo and Kiiminki Mon–Fri at 8.00-12.00. Please, bring your Kela-card, a ID card with a picture or passport with you.

Persons coming from countries outside the European Union will be charged a €74.95 fee for an appointment with a nurse (coronavirus test is free of charge). The fee is also charged for persons coming from EU countries or the Nordic countries if they do not have a certificate of entitlement to medical care with them (for example European Health Insurance Card issued by another country, an official identity card or a passport).

If you can´t communicate in Finnish, English or Swedish, you can have language assistance from the multilingual counselling of the City of Oulu.

 

If you need help or treatment from a professional

Omaolo or the Coronavirus Health Information Line will instruct you on how to proceed and guide you to testing or a Coronavirus Health Care Hub, if needed.

• Take a symptom self-assessment online at Omaolo-service or
• call the City of Oulu coronavirus helpline at 08 558 41414 (Mon–Thu from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Fri from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.).
• In the evening or on weekends, contact the Oulu Region Emergency Helpline, tel. 116 117.
• In emergency cases, call the number 112.

If you belong to a risk group, contact us soon.

If you can´t communicate in Finnish, English or Swedish, you can have language assistance from the multilingual counselling of the City of Oulu. You can come to the coronavirus hub without a previous contact. It is useful to go to the Hub by 2 p.m. (Fridays 1 p.m.). The Coronavirus Health Care Hubs operate at the emergency health care clinics of Kontinkangas, Tuira, Haukipudas, Oulunsalo and Kiiminki. Please, bring your Kela-card, a ID card with a picture or passport with you.

 

 

 

Instructions for families with children

If a child has clear symptoms of infection, you may not take the child to school or early childhood education and care. Mild symptoms of a viral infection in a child can be monitored at home. The symptoms are mild if the child is lively and has the energy to play and do things, even if they also have a runny nose, cough, and fever. The child should avoid contact with people outside the family until the symptoms ease significantly.

Children can also have a COVID-19 antigen home test taken.  If the home test is positive, it is important to stay at home until child gets better.  A positive home test result should only be confirmed with an official test if the child belongs to at-risk group for severe coronavirus disease.   If several family members are ill at the same time, it is enough that one person in the family gets tested.

If the child has allergic rhinitis, occasional sneezing, or if their nose starts to run when they go out, but the symptoms end when the child comes back indoors, the child can go to early childhood education or school as long as their general condition is otherwise normal and there are no symptoms of an infection. E

 

Instruction to a person tested for coronavirus disease

• After the test, go directly home, continuing to wear a mask.
• Self-isolate, i.e. stay at home and avoid social contacts until your symptoms have clearly alleviated.
• Allow from 1 to 3 days for the test result.
• You will be notified of a result by text message,
• A negative result means you do not have a coronavirus infection.
• A positive test result means you are infected with the coronavirus. In that case, stay at home and avoid social contacts until your symptoms have clearly alleviated. Symptomless persons who live in the same household with someone with a positive coronavirus test result may move freely outside the home, whether vaccinated or not.
• If you are pregnant and corona test is positive, contact your local mother and baby clinic (Neuvola) immediately after receiving the test result.
  
  You can also check your test result at
  • www.Omakanta.fi > Terveystiedot Health records > Laboratoriotutkimukset Laboratory tests (the result will be available within the next 3 days after the test is ready)
  • www.oulunomahoito.fi > Terveyspalvelut Health services > Laboratoriotulokset Laboratory results (the result will be available at the same time also at healthcare centres)
  • Unfortunately, a guardian is not able to access the data of a child older than 10 years of age.
  • If necessary, you may inquire about the result, also for an over 10-year-old child, during office hours on Omahoito (Self-Care Services in English), in Chat or by calling the booking service at your local health clinic. 

Multilingual counselling services help with language issues. 
 

Multilingual counselling

Villa Victor multilingual counselling service can help, if you need to contact, for instance, coronavirus helpline, but your Finnish or English skills are limited. You can also get information about coronavirus. Because of coronavirus, the multilingual counselling provide assistance mainly over the telephone and on WhatsApp from Mondays to Thursdays 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. and Fridays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The counselling point is on the street level of the Oulu10 building, in Torikatu 10.

Please see the timetable of different languages on the multilingual guidance website

Languages

• Arabic/Berber/French
• Dari/Farsi/Persian
• Chinese/Japanese
• Somali
• Tigrinya
• Vietnamese
• Turkish/Kurdish
• Russian/Dutch

 

The page Coronavirus information in different languages (THL) has a collection of links that can help you find information on the coronavirus in different languages. The links will help you find, for example, directions on how to avoid infection and information on vaccines, the vaccination process, and travel. 

Seasonal influenza vaccinations are available. See more information in Finnish.
 

Corona information in English (city of Oulu)

Monikielinen neuvonta Oulussa - Multilingual assistance

 

Aktuellt om coronaviruset COVID-19 (THL)

 

Tietoa koronaviruksesta eri kielillä (THL)
Information on coronavirus in different languages (THL)

Viittomakielistä tietoa koronaviruksesta (Kuurojen liitto)

Koronatietoa selkokielellä (selkokeskus)

Koronavirus selkokielellä (THL)

Infofinland.fi koronasivut (12 eri kieltä)