The Carbon Monoxide Data Gap

We saw it on our screens in January, when a character on Coronation Street was rushed to hospital and almost died due to a carbon monoxide (CO) alarm malfunctioning. Sadly, the risk is very real and goes beyond a fictional TV show. As a silent, odourless and colourless gas, CO is difficult to detect. There are approximately 4,000 A&E admissions for CO poisoning and 40 deaths each year in England (NICE). ?Whilst 40 per cent of A&E admissions are due to intentional CO self-harm, 51 per cent are due to accidental exposure, with nine per cent of cases being undetermined (NICE).

At high levels CO can kill rapidly, but there is also the risk of breathing in lower levels of CO over time. This might make you feel like you have the flu, or are suffering from a hangover, depression, or even food poisoning. You might not realise you are being poisoned by CO. This is one of the many reasons why CO poisoning has come to be recognised across the energy industry as the silent killer, which is often misdiagnosed and underreported.

The CO data gap

There is a data gap when it comes to CO. Not only is it challenging for individuals to identify if they’ve been exposed to it (though knowing the sources helps, including old household appliances, such as boilers, that haven’t been serviced recently; barbecues, particularly when mistakenly brought inside; malfunctioning heaters; fireplaces; stoves; vehicle exhaust fumes), it can also be challenging for organisations that respond to incidents to understand the full picture. The build-up of CO that caused the symptoms will have escaped once a window is opened, for instance, therefore providing no evidence of CO in the building once a Gas Distribution Network or Fire and Rescue Service turns up. It’s also very common for people not to understand the sounds that their CO alarm makes, or to forget to regularly push the test button on their alarm. Consequently, many households do not realise that the alarm sensor or battery has reached the end of its life, potentially leaving them vulnerable to the risk of CO. ?

This all contributes to a CO data gap, which can be compounded if the organisations responding to incidents (for example Gas Distribution Networks, Fire and Rescue Services, and healthcare services, including A&E, General Practitioners and ambulance services) don’t capture data consistently, or share it amongst each other.

The CO data gap means that we don’t have a complete national picture of the real numbers of CO cases. The more trusted, accurate and reliable data we have on CO, the better we can understand the real causes and effects of CO poisoning and target the actions we take.

Tackling and preventing CO poisoning is a big focus for us at Cadent and our initiatives each help to reduce the data gap. In many instances we are the first responders, attending households where a CO alarm has sounded. We provide vulnerable households with CO alarms, we service risky appliances, we run awareness and education programmes (Safety Seymour, for instance, is our popular character that teaches primary school children about the risks of CO), and we trial new technology and other solutions to prevent CO risks emerging in the first place. We partner with Fire and Rescue Services, with local councils, with charities, with the NHS, and many more to expand our reach and impact. We want to see an end to an issue that is causing too many unnecessary deaths, injuries and ill health.

Improved data across industries is an essential enabler to that.