Electronic Requesting
Wherever possible, all requesting of tests (except blood transfusion) should be done electronically using Sunquest ICE (further details here) - please contact your local trainer. Any problems, please contact Yoni Parshan on Ext 2604.
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Woman who had antenatal care at Trafford are being delivered at Wythenshawe. In order to allow their laboratory results from Trafford to be seen at UHSM, there is a link between the two ICE systems. Provided that the patient has been registered at UHSM, both sets of results should be visible against the same patient record.
If Sunquest ICE is not available, joint Biochemistry/Haematology request forms should be used instead.
Collection of samples for pathology investigation
All medical and surgical wards are covered every morning (Monday - Sunday)
Please enter your request into Sunquest ICE for the Phlebotomist by 8.15 a.m. Monday - Friday, and 7.30 a.m. Saturday - Sunday.
All urgent blood samples must be taken by doctors, not left for the phlebotomists.
All request forms must be completed in full.
There is a phlebotomy service for patients from Out-Patients and GPs only (not for inpatients):
- in Phlebotomy Suite, opposite the first floor Out-Patients Department, from 09.00 - 16.00 hrs, Monday to Friday
- in the Main Out-Patients Department at Withington Community Hospital. The phlebotomy service at Withington is open from 08.30 to 17.00 , Monday to Friday, but GP patients are only bled from 08.30 to 12.30.
Procedure for collection of blood specimens.
DO NOT STICK ADDRESSOGRAPH LABELS ON BLOOD SPECIMEN CONTAINERS, as they jam the laboratory analysers. Only small self adhesive labels approved by the laboratory may be used on blood specimen containers.
If no labels are available, write the patient details and test information clearly using a ball point pen. Ensure that the information is on both parts of the form. All samples should be labelled at the point and time of collection.
Note that you need to take separate samples for each pathology discipline - microbiology, immunology, biochemistry and haematology. Serum B12, folate and ferritin are analysed by biochemistry.
If the blood sample is limited (e.g. paediatric blood samples, please indicate the priority of the analyses.
Vacutainers should be used for phlebotomy. In the rare event of taking blood by needle and syringe, insert the needle through the bung of the tube, which has been placed in a rack. DO NOT HOLD THE TUBE! Never re-sheath needles or leave unsheathed on a surface e.g. bed cabinet. A needle stick injury could cost the Trust millions!
Do not fill the blood tube by removing the cap, as the positive pressure will blow the cap off during transit or processing.
Allow the vacuum in the blood tube to draw up the required amount of blood. Do not force the syringe plunger in order to expel the blood contents into the blood tube as this causes haemolysis and abnormal test results.
All patients for venepuncture should be treated as a potential risk: gloves should be worn for all venepunctures. However take special care during phlebotomy of potentially infected patients (hepatitis or HIV).
Phlebotomists are under instruction to take blood for cross matching but not from central venous lines.
Blood cultures are not taken by Phlebotomists.