Phil the Medical Assistant has been notified that yet another of his finger sticks has been rejected by the lab. The lab tech tells him, "Dude, quit milking so much!" Phil is not sure what that means. Can you tell Phil what is causing rejection of his capillary collections from finger puncture?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Milking is a term used to describe a squeezing and pulling action used with a finger puncture. Inexperienced phlebotomy techs may try this, in an attempt to collect a specimen. The milking action causes fluid normally found in the soft tissue of the fingertip to be squeezed out into the blood. It can also cause hemolysis. Fluid from soft tissue and ruptured blood cells can skew test results, in which case the lab will request another draw, and the phlebotomy tech's rejection rate will increase.

Phil the Medical Assistant Has Been Notified That Yet Another