Northern General Hospital

a. Local Arrangements

1. Use Chute system where available
2. Walk sample to Laboratory Medicine Building
3. Leave sample for our collection team. Specimen collection runs are provided by Laboratory Medicine for the transport of diagnostic samples from the NGH ward and clinic areas to the Lab Med Building. The collection runs are to supplement the pod system in use within NGH. The collection runs are for non-urgent samples, bulky samples and container types that are not suitable for the chute system.

Detailed Collection Time

Placement of Collection Basket

Royal Hallamshire Hospital

a. Local Arrangements

Following options are available for non-urgent samples 1. Use Chute system where available 2. Place samples in ‘specimen collection cupboard’ if within the times specified. Leaving beyond these times is likely to inadvertently result in ‘lost’ and ‘beyond use’ sample. Please be warned. (located outside of the ward area, close to the lift lobby, on each floor of the building)

  • Inside the cupboard you will find a number of boxes/tins labelled for specific specimen types
  • Deposit in the correct box/tin for specimen type

RHH Sample pick up times from Ward Cupboards: Monday - Friday & Saturday

3. Walk to RHH Pick-up Location for Transport Pick-up (Click here for Pickup timings and details)

Weston Park Hospital

a. Local Arrangements

Specimen Collection Information 9am 5pm Monday to Friday: Samples are picked up from wards by Porters every other hour. Please deposit patient samples in the specified ward box/container. Porters pick samples and chute these to RHH Chemistry from where these are appropriately transferred. Outside these hours: Routine samples can be collected by Porters at random and due to the skeleton service out of hours, trips may be missed. Samples should be dropped at Porters’ Lodge. These then generally wait for next morning unless Cab going for other reasons to NGH.

Jessops Wing

a. Local Arrangements

Following options are available for non-urgent samples 1.Use Chute system where available 2.Leave sample at designated ward area for Labs team to pickup (LMTR004)

  • Mon to Fri
    • 9am Ante Natal + ACU
    • 10am Level 3 = all 4 wards

Level 2= Labour ward + Neo Natal Level 1= ANC, Gyne OPD, Colp OPD, ACU and Feto Maternal

    • 11am Neo Natal only
    • 12am same as 10am pick up
    • 2pm same as 10am pick up
    • 4pm same as 10am pick up

 

  • Saturday
    • 9am               Level 3 all 4 wards

Level 2 Labour ward and Neo natal

Level 1 ACU

3. Walk to Jessops’ 24hr Reception for Transport across to NGH (see below for Pickup timings and details)   4.Walk to RHH Pick-up Location for Transport Pick-up (Click here for Pickup timings and details)

Sheffield Children Hospital

a. Local Arrangements

Specimen Collection Information

Monday-Friday (9am-5pm) During normal working hours, all Microbiology & Virology samples can be sent to the SCH clinical chemistry labs either:

  • via the POD system or
  • via specimen collection boxes located near the reception desk of each ward /clinical area & these will be collected at the following times:
  1. Monday – Friday at 0900, 1300 and 1535
  2. Extra collection at 1130 if the POD system is not working

Driver Pickup from SCH Clinical Chemistry to Transport to Labs @ NGH at the following times: Mon-Fri 0940, 1110, 1310, 1440, 1600, 1710 Monday-Friday (After 5pm)

  • Take all Microbiology & Virology Samples To Emergency Department Reception
  • Do Not Leave Samples In The Box Located In Chemistry– They Will Not Be Collected

Weekends & Bank Holidays

  • Take all Microbiology & Virology Samples To Emergency Department Reception
  • Do Not Leave Samples In The Box Located In Chemistry– They Will Not Be Collected

Driver Pickup from SCH ED Reception to Transport to Labs @ NGH at the following times at Weekends and Bank Holidays: 0830, 1130, 1430, 1730, 1930, 2130, 2300

GP Surgeries

a. Local Arrangements

Frequent pickups are made by our transport system from select GP surgeries. For further details, please contact us via our ‘Contact Us’ page.

Transport information Desk

Instructions

Timetable for Inter-Hospital Specimen Transfers

 

- WK = Whiteknights - contact on 0800 101 7800 (or speed dial #6590)

Notes:
1 - Transport only operates on Mon, Tue, Wed & Fri only

2 - Last pick-up from C Floor, OPD before department closes

3 - Collection of Haematology samples from Taxi Reception Desk on A Floor, OPD, RHH

4 - Drop off Haematology samples and pick up SCH samples from Main reception desk

 

Timetable for Inter-Hospital Specimen Transfers (Sat, Sun & BH)

- WK = Whiteknights - contact on 0800 101 7800 (or speed dial #6590)

Notes:
1 - Transport only operates on Mon, Tue, Wed & Fri only

2 - Last pick-up from C Floor, OPD before department closes

3 - Collection of Haematology samples from Taxi Reception Desk on A Floor, OPD, RHH

4 - Drop off Haematology samples and pick up SCH samples from Main reception desk

 

Every now and then there are scenarios which require urgent processing of samples. Whether its source person testing for needle stick injuries or rapid turnaround of test results which have a direct immediate impact on patient management, we are here to help. Most of our systems are automated which means samples sent to the lab do not come to human attention either at all or very late in the sample journey. For this reason, it is important to flag up the need for urgent testing by contacting the laboratory medical staff via details provided on the 'Contact Us' page. They will be able to put checks in place to ensure these samples are brought to human attention and processed early.

An important aspect of urgent processing is to ensure samples arrive at the lab in a timely manner. Use the chute system as the method of choice. Where this is not available, you will need to walk these to the lab. If you happen to be at an off-Northern General Hospital-site, urgent transport to our labs will be needed. Details of transport are given under 'Where to drop samples'.