Introduction to Microbiology Specimen Collection and Transfer

1)Introduction

Reliability of clinical microbiology laboratory results depend 50 per cent on the quality of the specimen collected. The importance of specimen collection should be recognized by physician/nurse who collects the specimen.

General Guidelines

Specimen collected should be representative of the disease process.

• Should be collected before antimicrobial therapy, whenever possible.
• Sufficient material is to be collected aseptically and should circumvent normal Flora.
• Patient to be given proper instruction for collection (of urine, sputum, etc.).
• Relevant clinical history to be provided.
• Prompt and appropriate delivery to the laboratory (Bedside plating in some cases).
• All specimens should be labeled appropriately.
• Specimens containing dangerous pathogens should be labeled “High Risk”, with a warning symbol such as a red dot or star or triangle.