▪ as an aid to the diagnosis of disease

▪ for the purposes of screening in health to facilitate cancer diagnosis, staging and typing

▪ to monitor the effect of treatment

▪ to permit laboratory culture to identify pathogenic micro-organisms and determine drug sensitivity.

1. Appropriate container clearly labelled with the patient’s details

2. Equipment to enable the collection of the specimen

3. Laboratory form

4. Plastic specimen bag for transportation.

▪ explain the nursing practice to the patient to gain consent and co-operation. Patients should be encouraged to be active partners in care

▪ ensure the patient’s privacy to help to maintain dignity and a sense of self

▪ the nurse and the patient (if he or she is involved in the collection of the specimen) should wash their hands to reduce the risk of cross-infection (Jeanes 2005, NHS Education for Scotland 2005)

▪ ensure that the appropriate precautions are observed to reduce the risk of contact with body fluids during the collection and transportation of the specimen (Roberts 2000, Clark et al 2002)

▪ collect the specimen at the most appropriate time to facilitate obtaining accurate results. This time will vary depending on the specimen; the optimum time for the collection of a specimen of urine for culture is, for example, from the first voiding of the bladder in the morning

▪ to avoid interference with accurate results, ensure that no substance that might cause an inaccurate result has been used prior to collection (Wilson 1996). A specimen of sputum could, for example, be adversely affected by the patient using an antiseptic mouthwash before giving the specimen

▪ ensure that sufficient quantities of the specimen have been collected to assist the laboratory staff in preparing the specimen for analysis, which will lead to accurate results

▪ avoid contamination of the specimen by the hands of the nurse or patient as this could invalidate the results of the culture and be a hazard to the individual’s health

▪ avoid contamination of the outside of the container with the specimen substance as this could pose a health risk to anyone handling the specimen (Wilson 1996)

▪ ensure that the patient is left feeling as comfortable as possible after collecting the specimen

▪ immediately dispatch the labelled specimen container to the laboratory with the completed form; any delay may alter the reliability of any results obtained. If a delay is unavoidable, the specimen can usually be stored in a specimen refrigerator until it can be sent for analysis

▪ document this nursing practice appropriately, monitor the after-effects and report any abnormal findings immediately so that appropriate measures can be instigated to relieve the problem

▪ in undertaking this practice, nurses are accountable for their actions, the quality of care delivered and record-keeping according to the Code of Professional Conduct: Standards for Conduct, Performance and Ethics (Nursing and Midwifery Council 2004) and Guidelines for Records and Record Keeping (Nursing and Midwifery Council 2005).