A urine specimen was collected in a physician's office on Friday afternoon. It was placed in the refrigerator for the courier to pick up and transport to the microbiology laboratory. The courier missed the specimen on his last run of the day. The specimen remained in the refrigerator until Monday morning. The courier picked up the specimen on his first run of the day and transported it to the microbiology laboratory. On receipt, you will

Question

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Urine specimens for microbiological analysis should be processed as soon as possible, ideally within 2 hours of collection. If there is a delay, they should be refrigerated and processed within 24 hours to prevent overgrowth of contaminants or the death of pathogens. A specimen collected on Friday and not processed until Monday exceeds this 24-hour window, potentially compromising the accuracy of the test results. Therefore, the specimen should be rejected.

A Urine Specimen Was Collected in a Physician's Office on Friday