Analyzing clinical laboratory specimen rejection rates at a specialized hospital in Ethiopia: A 2-year document review

Teshiwal Deress; Yeshewas Abebaw; Yezena Esayas; Semegn Nebertu; Meseret Kinidie; Germaw Abebe; Biruk Bayleyegn

doi:10.1093/ajcp/aqae019

Analyzing clinical laboratory specimen rejection rates at a specialized hospital in Ethiopia: A 2-year document review

Am J Clin Pathol. 2024 Mar 9:aqae019. doi: 10.1093/ajcp/aqae019. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Teshiwal Deress¹, Yeshewas Abebaw², Yezena Esayas², Semegn Nebertu², Meseret Kinidie², Germaw Abebe², Biruk Bayleyegn³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Quality Assurance and Laboratory Management, School of Biomedical and Laboratory Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
² School of Biomedical and Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
³ Department of Hematology and Immunohematology, School of Biomedical and Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.

PMID: 38459898
DOI: 10.1093/ajcp/aqae019

Abstract

Objectives: Accurate laboratory diagnosis is essential for effective patient care, but the rejection of specimens within laboratories can have serious consequences.

Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted from September to November 2021 at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital laboratory. Two years of laboratory data were collected from laboratory log books and analyzed to determine trends in specimen rejection rates and identify potential reasons for those rejections.

Results: We analyzed 114,439 specimens, of which 786 (0.70%) were rejected. The hematology service exhibited the highest rejection rate, at 273 (0.2%). The main reasons for specimen rejection were specimens without requests or requests without specimens (40.2%), poor smear preparation (12.3%), clotted specimens (11.3%), and labeling problems (8.0%).

Conclusions: This study emphasized a significant incidence of specimen rejection, particularly in the hematology laboratory, underscoring the need for immediate implementation of corrective actions and preventive measures. Furthermore, conducting comprehensive larger-scale studies is recommended to deepen our understanding of and investigate the specific factors contributing to specimen rejection in greater detail.

Keywords: Ethiopia; University of Gondar; clinical laboratory; contributing factors; retrospective study; specimen rejection rate.