The nurse notices a sputum specimen sitting on the bedside table in a patient's room. After asking the patient when he produced the sputum specimen, he learns the specimen is about 4 hours old. Knowing this information, the nurse:
A) Immediately takes the sputum specimen to the laboratory
B) Discards the specimen and assists the patient in obtaining another specimen
C) Refrigerates the sputum specimen
D) Waits an additional 2 hours before sending the specimen to the laboratory
Ans: B
Feedback: A sputum specimen should be delivered to the laboratory within 2 hours of collection. Allowing the specimen to stand for several hours in a warm room results in the overgrowth of contaminated organisms and may make it difficult to identify the pathogenic organisms. Refrigeration of the sputum specimen is not an appropriate action.
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