A diagnosis of occupational asthma should prompt a physician to contact the patient’s employer to discuss the safety of other workers, according to leading respiratory physicians.

A new position statement, endorsed by the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ) and the National Asthma Council Australia, says work-related asthma is underdiagnosed and under-reported.

“All occurrences of work-related asthma are potentially preventable,” the authors say.

“Because a new diagnosis of occupational asthma is a sentinel event, the managing clinician has an ethical responsibility to communicate with the workplace and facilitate measures that protect coworkers.”