As a component of the regional mission of advocating "A System Designed to Save Lives," the Eastern PA EMS Council recently engaged in a six-county initiative to outfit EMS units with portable and highly sophisticated carbon monoxide gas detectors.

With the winter here, homeowners are heating their residences through a variety of means.

The greatest concern is homeowners who use a fossil fuel-based heating product which could, without ongoing professional maintenance, result in the production of carbon monoxide gas.

Commonly referred to as CO gas, this odorless, colorless and tasteless gas is dubbed "The Silent Killer," as its victims do not realize their exposure until the toxic effects begin to take effect.

The Eastern PA EMS Council, located at Tri-Clover Fire Company, Orefield, is a contracted agent of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of EMS.

The council serves more than 150 professional EMS agencies and partners in Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe, North-ampton and Schuylkill counties.

The EMS Council recently purchased pager-size CO detectors for more than 400 EMS units that respond to emergency 911 requests.

These highly sophisticated devices are carried into homes, businesses and other locations during the course of the emergency response and have become a standardized item in the cache of tools carried by responding EMS professionals.

Designed to recognize very low levels of the dangerous CO gas, EMS practitioners are quickly alerted to the presence of the gas by both an audible and digital alarm, John Kloss, executive director of the Eastern PA EMS Council said regarding to the alarm.

"If it Activates, you Evacuate" defines the dangers associated with the gas and the need for both patient and EMS to expeditiously remove themselves from the danger.

Recently, EMS responded for a patient complaining of stroke-like symptoms in Lehigh County.

Unfortunately, the home they were responding to did not have a CO detector so even following the aggressive 911 center call intake process, the communications technicians at the 911 center had no reason to believe the request for medical assistance was anything more than what the caller presented.

An EMS crew from Northampton Regional EMS was dispatched to the call for assistance for what appeared to be a medical emergency.

As the EMS crew entered the home, the CO alarm immediately began to activate.

EMS quickly identified the high levels of deadly gas and evacuated the patient and the family members.

The EMS Crew summoned local firefighters who validated the high levels of CO gas and assisted with ventilating the residence.

Dr. Rebecca Pequeno, chairperson of the Eastern PA EMS Council Performance Improvement Committee, reports carbon monoxide kills approximately 500 people every year and is responsible for an estimated 15,000 visits annually to emergency departments in the United States.

Carbon monoxide can be produced by unvented space heaters, leaking chimneys or furnaces, grills or generators used inside or too close to a home, and exhaust from automobiles.

Carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless and binds to the hemoglobin in red bloods cells which prevents blood from carrying oxygen to vital organs such as the heart and brain.

Exposure to carbon monoxide at lower levels can cause flu-like symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, dizziness, headaches, nausea and vomiting.

High-level exposures can lead to chest pain, confusion, stroke-like symptoms, seizures, unconsciousness and death.

Carbon monoxide exposure can affect anyone, but young children, the elderly population, people with heart or lung disease and pregnant women are at the highest risk for adverse effects from carbon monoxide.

Anyone with concern for exposure should immediately go to an area with fresh air and seek immediate medical attention regardless of severity of symptoms.

The message is clear: carbon monoxide detectors save lives.

The Eastern PA EMS Council strongly advocates the placement of both smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in residences, business and industry.

This minimal investment is without question a proven tool in the prevention of serious illness and potentially death not just during the colder months, but throughout the year.