General Practice
Sheffield Laboratory Medicine provides services to general practices across Sheffield and further afield. Our goal is to examine a wide range of specimens, including body fluids and tissues that best represents the conditions found in the patient. To achieve this, our laboratories have modern state of the art equipment and well-trained staff that receive the specimens, perform the tests and report the results. There are also the added benefits of results interpretation by more experienced team of expert staff.
The journey of the specimens begins from the moment they are taken. There are many factors that can affect the specimen integrity from the point of collection to the point of testing and in order to minimise the impact of such, it is essential to follow the approved guidelines for specimen collection, labelling, storage and transport.
Our guidelines include the order of blood collection, the specimen containers to use for the various tests, the pre-analysis temperature and length of storage.
Please contact the laboratory if you have specific concerns about stability before collecting the specimens. Below is a general recommendation for storage of specimens prior to courier transport pick up.
Same day courier collection
| Specimens | Storage | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| Biochemistry Bloods | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Biochemistry Urines | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Haematology Bloods | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Immunology Bloods | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Microbiology Bloods | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Microbiology/Virology Bloods | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Microbiology Faeces | Fridge temperature (2 – 8oC) | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Microbiology Sputum | Fridge temperature (2 – 8oC) | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Microbiology Swab | Fridge temperature (2 – 8oC) | Keep away from direct sunlight or source of heat |
| Cellular Pathology (Gynae & Non-gynae) | Room temperature, not exceeding 25oC | Do not refrigerate |
Specimens should be dispatched with the next available courier and where delays are unavoidable, next day courier collection should be arranged and the following storage guidelines followed as long storage affects the integrity of specimens.
Next day courier collection
| Specimens | Storage | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| Biochemistry Bloods | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Only Creatinine and Urea are reportable in specimens more than 8 hours after collection. |
| Biochemistry Urines | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Haematology Bloods | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Specimens for malaria screening must not be stored – arrange urgent courier to transport to the laboratory. White cells deteriorate with time while serum folate increase on storage. |
| Immunology Bloods | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Microbiology Bloods | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Microbiology/Virology Bloods | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Blood culture and mycology specimens should not be stored at fridge temperature. Room temperature storage away from source of heat is recommended. |
| Microbiology Faeces | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Microbiology Sputum | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Microbiology Swab | Fridge temperature (2 – 8 oC) | Keep away from source of heat |
| Cellular Pathology (Gynae & Non-gynae) | Room temperature, not exceeding 25 oC | Do not refrigerate |
If you would like to know more about how we can help you, please contact us by telephone on 0114 226 7666 or email us at sth.labmed@nhs.net.