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Article: Collection conundrum: What's the proper procedure for labeling blood tubes?
- Article from:
- Medical Laboratory Observer
- Article date:
- September 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Nelson Publishing. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Q I was always trained to draw blood on a patient and label the tube immediately after. Our new laboratory director insists that we label the tubes first, then draw the patient. I think this takes too much time and wastes tubes and labels when, for some reason, there is a difficult draw or the tube vacuum fails. What's the correct procedure?
A The short answer to your question is that you should follow the procedures outlined by your facility. Failing to perform according to established procedures creates an unnecessary legal risk for the institution, challenges the authority of the director, and sets the staff up for discord and disorder. If you sincerely ...