Specimen Requirements

Acceptable Specimens:

Arterial line, central line, central venous pressure, intravenous, Hickman-Broviac, hyperalimentation, peripheral, Swan-Ganz, or umbilical

Unacceptable Specimens:
Urinary Foley catheter

Collect specimen as follows:

1. Cleanse skin around catheter with 70% isopropyl alcohol. Allow to dry.

2. Aseptically remove catheter being careful to avoid contamination with normal flora from skin or other body surfaces.

3. Aseptically cut off 1 to 2 inches of distal tip of catheter (including area directly beneath skin), and place it directly into a screw-capped, sterile container.

4. Label container with patient’s name (first and last), date and actual time of collection, and type of specimen.

5. Maintain sterility and forward promptly at ambient temperature only. Do not refrigerate.

Note:   Specimen source (type of catheter tip) is required on request form for processing.