Errors with laboratory specimens can arise from misidentification of the patient or misidentification of specimens. The vast majority of misidentification errors are preventable.
Patient selection: positively identified patient
Recommendations to avoid specimen misidentification errors:
(1) Keep specimens separate from those of other patients until they have been properly labeled.
(2) Label the specimen immediately (or as soon as possible).
(3) Generate label at the bedside if possible.
(4) Do not cover handwritten information on the specimen if possible.
(5) Place the label on the body of the container and not on the lid or cap.
(6) Double check and clarify discrepancies before leaving the bedside.
(7) Immediately discard any unused labels in a confidential manner.
(8) Be extra careful in an emergency situation.
If labels must be generated at a site other than the bedside, then there must be a foolproof mechanism to keep labels from different patients separate. Only the labels for the patient at hand should be accessed at any one time.
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