Specimen Collection / Phlebotomy

INPATIENT PHLEBOTOMY SERVICES

Location:                           4^th Floor, Room 4236, University Hospital

Supervisor:                       Pager PIC 1417

Supervisor On-Call:         Pager PIC 4131

Telephone:                        434-982-3181

Hours:                               Routine and STAT phlebotomy services are provided 

                                           24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

Blood collection by the Phlebotomy Team will include these schedules:

• ROUTINE (such as TODAY)

All routine laboratory orders for the 6:00am Phlebotomy team must be entered electronically by 3:05am.  Lab orders scheduled for TODAY will be released according to the following schedule:  12:05am, 3:05am, 8:05am, 12:05pm, 4:05pm, and 8:05pm.  If an order is placed to be collected NOW, it will be released immediately.  All central line draws, and non-blood samples will be collected by unit staff.

• TIMED (orders entered for specific times such as TODAY at 18:00)

Lab orders scheduled for TODAY at a specific time will be released at the appropriate time according to the following schedule:  12:05am, 3:05am, 8:05am, 12:05pm, 4:05pm, and 8:05pm.  Lab orders placed for patients needing a discharge by noon must have a priority of DISCHARGE PENDING. TIMED labs will be drawn +/- 30 minutes of the expected collection time.

• STAT (when ordered on the Acute Care Units Only)

STAT labs on all Acute Care Units will be released for Phlebotomy Team to collect within 30 minutes of the expected collection time.

Please see "Epic/Lab Orders Rules for Inpatient Specimen Collection."

OUTPATIENT PHLEBOTOMY SERVICES

Outpatient Phlebotomy Services are offered Mondays through Fridays on a walk-in, first-come, first-serve basis between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. See a list of locations and their specific hours of operation below.  

Outpatient Phlebotomy Services include venipuncture, urine collection, and drop-off of home collection specimens. All lab patients must be registered into the Medical Center Epic Patient Access system on the service date. A written or electronic lab order signed by an authorized provider is required for specimen collection. Oral requests for laboratory test collection cannot be honored unless accompanied by a written (FAX copy is acceptable) or electronic request.

Effective July 6, 2024, the Lab Location at the Emily Couric Cancer Center will offer Saturday Lab Appointments for patients in need of urgent lab testing. Saturday Phlebotomy Appointments are available between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. by provider referral and appointments only. Same-Day Appointments available. Saturday appointments are designated for non-emergency, urgent needs. Typically, this means elevated or abnormal lab results that do not fit the patient’s clinical picture, and time-sensitive labs requiring recollection or repeat testing. Patients with emergent labs who require medical attention should still be seen in the Emergency Department.

Instructions for Providers on how to schedule Saturday Lab Appointments at Emily Couric Cancer Center:

• MyChart Patients: Providers may send an appointment “ticket” via MyChart that will allow the patient to self-schedule online via MyChart. Access Scheduling Document
• Patients with no MyChart: Providers/clinics may send an Epic In-Basket message to the Ancillary Clerical Support Pool, and the access team will contact the patient to schedule an appointment.
• Non-Epic Providers: Call 434-297-4829 to schedule.

If patient needs after-hours labs, see after-hours Labs Standard Work for instructions. After-Hours Instructions