Chapter 2 · Patient and specimen identification

Patient identification must be verified before collection using at least two identifiers (name and date of birth as a minimum). The specimen must be labelled at the bedside immediately after collection — never in advance. Labels must include: patient name, date of birth or unique ID, date and time of collection, and collector identifier. Unlabelled or mislabelled specimens must be rejected and a nonconformity raised.

Practical example

A phlebotomist is collecting from an inpatient ward. Good practice: The phlebotomist asks the patient to state their name and date of birth, checks this against the wristband and the request form, and labels the tube at the bedside before leaving the patient. Poor practice: The phlebotomist labels the tubes in advance using the request form and just checks the patient’s name verbally — this is a specimen identification risk if tubes are collected on consecutive patients.

What this means for your practice: Specimen labelling must happen at the bedside, after collection, with the patient present. Pre-labelling tubes is a patient safety risk.