8th January 2026
Almost 20,000 people checked out Belfast Trust’s Children’s Symptom Checker in December.
Emergency Departments are still facing high numbers of people attending, and Belfast Trust is urging people to have a look at the options available if they or their children are feeling unwell.
The Children’s Symptom Checker has more information on many of the conditions and symptoms seen in the Emergency Department at Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children. These include breathing problems, fevers, tummy pain, coughs and colds through to burns and symptoms that are much more serious.
The Children’s Symptom Checker can be found here.
The platform can help ensure your child receives the most appropriate care in the right place, at the right time, from the most appropriate team. It was developed by the Trust’s Paediatric Emergency and General Paediatric Team, in consultation with Alder Hey Hospital and the Healthier Together Programme and saw more than 19 thousand clicks in December, when coughs and flus were at their peak. The online platform is easy to use, informative and provides high quality advice for parents or guardians to consider when their child becomes unwell.
Dr Julie-Ann Collins, Paediatric Emergency Consultant at Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, said:
“The Children’s Symptom Checker is an easy to use, informative tool which provides high quality, reliable and evidence-based advice to empower parents and carers when their child is unwell. Children regularly get sick, particularly during the winter months when respiratory illnesses are circulating widely. We understand that this can be worrying for parents and want to ensure that children receive the right care, at the right time and by the most appropriate team. We would encourage parents to visit our online Children’s Symptom Checker to find information on the most common conditions and symptoms that affect children. The traffic light system guides you through what to do in different situations to find the best course of action for your child’s condition.”
Dr Sarah Kapur, General Paediatric Consultant, Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children said:
“Bringing a child to an Emergency Department is sometimes the right course of action when there are red flag features as described in the Children’s Symptom Checker. The Children’s Symptom Checker also provides recommendations on other available supports such as guidance on self-care at home, GP services and pharmacies. We also hope it provides reassurance where appropriate to parents and helps them make informed choices.”