Chapter 3 · Specimen transport and chain of custody

Transport conditions must be documented for each specimen type: temperature range, time limits, light protection, and acceptable containers. The laboratory must document when specimens arrived and in what condition. A chain of custody must be maintained for medico-legal specimens. Specimens that arrive outside of acceptable conditions must be rejected, with the reason documented and the requester notified.

Practical example

Specimens for cryoglobulin analysis must be transported at 37°C. A courier arrives with the sample at room temperature. Good practice: The specimen reception technician checks the transport log, identifies the temperature deviation, rejects the specimen, documents the rejection reason, notifies the requesting clinician, and requests recollection with correct transport instructions. Poor practice: The specimen is processed anyway because ‘it’s probably fine’ — results may be false negative and the clinical decision will be wrong.

What this means for your practice: Transport condition violations cannot be reversed. The sample is already compromised. Rejection protects the patient.