Before collecting a blood specimen, the most important reason to confirm the patient's identity is to
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Medical Office Assistant · Clinical Laboratory Technology and Diagnostics
Patient Identification, Safety, and Tourniquet Concepts
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Quick check
5 questions here, of 87 in this lesson’s practice set. Answers stay hidden until you check.
The safest way to have a patient confirm their identity before a collection is to
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Which pair is the best example of two acceptable patient identifiers to confirm before collection?
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Why is a room number NOT an acceptable way to identify a patient before collection?
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A patient states their name correctly, but the date of birth they give does not match the requisition. The assistant should
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Study tools & related lessonsYou’ll learn to · Related
You’ll learn to
- Verify patient identity with two patient-specific identifiers before any blood collection and escalate any mismatch or uncertainty per office policy.
- Apply standard precautions and bloodborne pathogen safety practices, including PPE selection, hand hygiene, and exposure response, when assisting with collections.
- Explain correct tourniquet use, including placement, tightness, and time limits, and recognize the risks of prolonged or overly tight application.
- Prevent wrong-patient, specimen-quality, and injury errors and escalate concerns to licensed staff rather than acting outside scope.
Sources & references
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — Laboratory Quality
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration — Bloodborne Pathogens
- U.S. National Library of Medicine — MedlinePlus
This lesson was adapted from the open educational references above; their licenses and attributions are preserved. See Copyright & Licensing.
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