Blood Bank

Preferred Sample Type

Abnormal antibody Investigation / crossmatching

Suitable Specimen Types

EDTA Whole Blood

Abnormal antibody Investigation / crossmatching

Specimen Volume

4x 4ml (Samples should be handwritten and labelled in accordance with the trust policy)

Turnaround Time

24 hours

Sample Stability

3 days

General Information

For more test information please see https://labtestsonline.org.uk/tests/red-blood-cell-rbc-antibody-identification

Patient Preparation

Pre-op samples for a patient with antibodies need to be sent to the department at least 24 hours before the procedure. Please send 4 x EDTA samples to send away for further investigation.

Notes

Patients who have received a transfusion or have been pregnant are capable of producing complex red blood cell antibodies. These antibodies need to be identified before proceeding with any other transfusion. If unable to identify inhouse, the samples may need to be referred to NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT).

Please see http://uhbpolicies/blood-transfusion.htm for further information.

 

Specifications

  • EQAS Scheme: No

Creation Date

Monday, 08 August 2011

Modification Date

Friday, 28 November 2025

General Information

General information about the website and its content

Read more

Location of Laboratories

Where the laboratories are located and information about the services offered at each laboratory

Read more

Copyright UHB Pathology 2025

Protection of Personal Information – Pathology Laboratories Services comply with the Trust Data Protection Policy and have procedures in place to allow the Directorate and it’s employees to comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 and associated best practice and guidance.

The laboratories at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Heartlands Hospital, Good Hope Hospital and Solihull Hospital form part of the services provided by University Hospitals Birmingham and are UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service) accredited to the ISO 15189:2022 standard. For a list of accredited tests and other information please visit the UKAS website using the following link: https://www.ukas.com/find-an-organisation/ 

  • Molecular Pathology is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No. 8759
  • Biochemistry is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No. 8910
  • Haematology and Transfusion is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No. 8784
  • Clinical Microbiology is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No. 8760
  • Cellular Pathology is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No. 10141
  • United Kingdom Health Security Agency laboratory is a UKAS accredited medical laboratory No.8213

Tests not appearing on the UKAS Schedule of Accreditation currently remain outside of our scope of accreditation. However, these tests have been validated to the same high standard as accredited tests and are performed by the same trained and competent staff.

For further test information, please visit the test database: https://qehbpathology.uk/test-database 

For further information contact Louise Fallon, Quality Manager, 0121 371 5962/ 0121 424 1235