Laboratory Medicine

Specimen Handling

Collection Instructions: Must indicate anticoagulant status to avoid delay. A Hematology consult is REQUIRED for inpatient samples (except for patients in the Hematology/Oncology ward). Referred-in patients and outpatients can be tested without a Hematology consult.

Write your initials, date and time of collection on the collection label.

Transportation: In/Outpatients: Send whole citrated blood at room temperature as soon as possible. Referred-in: Send frozen citrated plasma on dry ice. All samples must be sent to the Core Laboratory.

Stability: Specimens are stable for 4 hours post collection at room temperature. Specimens which are not tested within 4 hours can be double-spun to remove the citrated plasma. The citrated plasma is stable at -20°C for up to two weeks or -70°C for up to six months.

Sample Rejection Criteria: Clotted sample, grossly hemolyzed samples, unlabeled or samples with insufficient quantity will be rejected.