Browsing Tag

Specimen Collection

Compliance & Safety, General Information

Lab Specimen Drop Off Policy Change

Effective Tuesday, February 20, 2024, the policy for home collected specimen drop offs for Outpatient Laboratories (“draw sites”) has been updated.

For all Corewell Health West Michigan locations: after registration, patients or their designated person will verify the specimen at the laboratory. Laboratory team members will verify the specimen is properly labeled and ensure they have everything needed to be able to test the specimen before the patient or their designated person leaves the building. This does not include specimens collected by a home health nurse or provider.

This will standardize our patient flow when arriving with a home collected specimen and will reduce the need for recollection due to missing information or improper collection.

When specimen collection orders are placed, please notify patients of the change to this process.

RELATED RESOURCES

Lab Specimen Home Collection Guide

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February 16, 2024 by
Test Utilization

Test Update: Chlamydia Culture Discontinued

Effective September 13, 2023, Corewell Health Laboratory will discontinue the Chlamydia Culture orderable. For patients 14 years of age and older, please order Chlamydia PCR.

• This specimen can be either a swab (genital, rectal, or throat) or a urine sample.
• The collection container is the STD-Multi-Collection Kit.
• For more information please visit: Chlamydia PCR

For patients that are under 14 years of age, a “Reference Miscellaneous Test” [LAB 848], must be ordered.

• This specimen can be either a swab (genital, rectal, or throat) or a urine sample.
• The collection container is the Aptima
• For more information please visit: APTIMA Chlamydia, NAAT, ThinPrep, Swab, Urine

As a reminder, PCR testing is also preferred for gonorrhea, when the specimen types are compatible. Continue Reading

August 30, 2023 by
Education & Training, General Information, Histology

Best Practices for Small Tissue Material

Tissue specimens less than 0.1cm may yield insufficient results if submitted for Tissue Pathology. To make the best use of diagnostic tissue material please follow the below guidelines:

Biopsy Size Order Code Test Preservative
<0.1cm LAB2111263 Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) Cytology *CytoLyt solution
>0.1cm LAB8 Tissue Pathology 10% Formalin

*Place entire specimen in CytoLyt. Do not attempt to make smears from specimen.

Please contact the Corewell Health Pathology Department at (616)267-2622 Mon-Fri, 8am-5pm, or the Corewell Health Laboratory Call Center at (616)774-7721, 24/7 to speak with a Pathologist.

May 15, 2023 by
Compliance & Safety, Education & Training, General Information

Tips for Home Collection

From collection to transport, Spectrum Health Laboratories must have quality specimens to produce accurate results you can trust. A quality specimen is one that has been collected and transported, keeping specimen integrity and patient identification intact. It is important to remind patients to carefully follow all collection and transportation instructions to ensure the sample usable and not tainted.

Please help remind patients:

♦ Submit all specimens as soon as collection is completed. Many tests are time sensitive.

♦ After collection, make sure lid is secured and fastened evenly, as leaky specimens will be rejected.

♦ Keep the container upright at all times.

♦ If a second container is needed, the patient should obtain a second container from the laboratory or draw site. Do not use home containers (i.e. butter container) or bags, as these may contaminate the specimen.

♦ Specimen is labeled clearly with

◊ Patient’s full legal name

◊ Date of birth

◊ Date and time of collection

Warning: Some kits contain preservatives. Please let patients know to not drink, ingest or inhale fumes. If disposal is needed please contact the laboratory.  In case of skin or eye contact, irritation, or swallowing call poison control as soon as possible: 800.222.1222.

For more information, please review “Laboratory Specimen Home Collection Document” or the Lab Catalog for more information.

August 30, 2022 by
Chemistry, Compliance & Safety, Education & Training, General Information, Referral/Sendouts

Preservative For 24 Hour Urine Collections

In both the inpatient and outpatient settings, the laboratory has supplied 24 hour urine containers with preservative such as acetic acid, sodium hydroxide, and boric acid.  Upon review of specimen stability requirements, it has been determined that a preservative is not needed prior to collection of most 24 hour urine tests as long as the 24 hour container is kept refrigerated or on ice during the collection period. Continue Reading

April 1, 2019 by