A specimen arrives in the laboratory with a label that does not match the test requisition. The most appropriate action is to
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Medical Office Assistant · Clinical Laboratory Technology and Diagnostics
Rejection Criteria, Documentation, and Reporting
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5 questions here, of 85 in this lesson’s practice set. Answers stay hidden until you check.
Before any specimen is collected, the medical office assistant should confirm the patient's identity using
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To help prevent mislabeling errors, specimen labels should be applied
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A serum or plasma specimen that appears pink or red after centrifugation most likely indicates
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Which of the following actions during blood collection is most likely to cause hemolysis of the specimen?
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Study tools & related lessonsYou’ll learn to · Related
You’ll learn to
- Recognize common specimen rejection criteria, including hemolyzed, mislabeled, unlabeled, clotted, and wrong-container specimens, and explain why each is rejected.
- Document specimen collection, patient identification, collection issues, refusals, and corrections accurately and in accordance with office policy.
- Report specimen problems and collection issues to the appropriate staff through the established chain of command.
- Escalate patient-safety concerns, exposure incidents, and unclear situations to licensed staff or supervisors rather than acting beyond scope of practice.
- Apply standard precautions and bloodborne pathogen safety practices when handling, transporting, and disposing of specimens, including rejected ones.
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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