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DSHS Laboratory Services Section reminds everyone who submits blood specimens in serum separator tubes to adhere to manufacturer’s instructions, including proper collection, volume requirement, and centrifugation to insure complete separation of serum before shipping for testing. Manufacturer’s instructions can be found at: http://www.bd.com/vacutainer/pdfs/blood_collection_tubes_product_insert_VDP40035.pdf (PDF 517kb)
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Effective March 12, 2009, the laboratory will only accept serum specimens shipped cold for syphilis (RPR and TPPA), HIV, and Hepatitis C testing. The serum specimens may be collected in one of two ways.
- The specimen may be collected in a red top blood tube and centrifuged within two hours of collection; pipette serum into a transport tube and ship that that tube, containing only serum, cold.
- The specimen may be collected in a serum separator tube (SST), centrifuged within two hours of collection, and the SST shipped cold.
This resources page will be updated as new information is available. Please check back frequently. Dates and information may change as a result of the implementation process. This page will be updated as changes occur.
Please provide contact information so that the DSHS Laboratory can send you updates. Also, to better serve your specimen testing needs, please complete the survey by filling out the survey and submitting it by email to LabInfo or by fax to (512) 458-7294.
Projected Implementation Calendar
| Anticipated Date |
Event |
| February 27, 2009 |
Training information posted |
| March 12, 2009 |
Deadline! Specimens received on March 12 must be received cold using one of the two methods above. |
| March 20, 2009 |
Centrifuge Training - 1:00pm (DSHS Laboratory, L-606, Austin, TX) Contact: Karen |
| Notices |
| Non-THSteps Submitters:
THSteps Submitters:
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| Training |
| If you would like to order training supplies, please send an email to LabInfo with the number of DVDs and/or flip cards requested.
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| Resources |
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Note: External links to other sites are intended to be informational and do not have the endorsement of the Texas Department of State Health Services. These sites may not be accessible to people with disabilities.