Swansea GP CO Monitor Scheme

Smoking is still the single largest preventable cause of ill health and death, causing over 5,000 deaths in Wales every year.

Evidence shows a smoker who is supported through specialist services is four times more likely to quit than those who go it alone. In addition, the use of pharmacological aids can increase a smokers quit rate by up to 50%. Currently only 2.6 of all Welsh smokers attend the NHS free service, Help Me Quit which falls short of the Welsh Governments annual target of 5%.

ASH Wales has created the new project to help GPs and practice staff to increase the number of would-be quitters getting the right support and nicotine replacement for them. Smokers who are supported by specialist services, like through their GP or local pharmacy, are four times more likely to stay quit than those who go it alone.

In partnership with pharmaceutical company Pfizer, ASH Wales have provided 24 GP surgeries with ‘smoke’ breath monitors; hand-held devices which take just a matter of seconds to show a patient the current level of carbon monoxide – poisonous smoke – in their body. Using a colour-coded traffic light system, patients can see the amount of damage they are doing to their bodies, acting as a powerful motivator to think about acting to conquer their habit.