Instructions for Stool Collection and Drop-Off at Children's Hospital ...

Instructions for Stool Collection and Drop-Off at Children’s
Hospital Boston (Waltham)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR
EVERY STOOL COLLECTION
You must place stool samples in the sterile
containers provided or it cannot be
accepted.
You must put stool samples collected from
a diaper into a specimen cup before the lab
will accept it. You can keep the diaper cold
in the fridge (or on ice) if you do not have
a sterile specimen cup at the time of
collection. Bring it to the lab on ice and
then you can put the sample into a
specimen cup.
Instructions for collecting a stool specimen:
Culture (SSYC)
1. Place stool collection container (collection
hat) under toilet seat.
2. The stool collected cannot contain or be
mixed with urine.
3. Use a tongue depressor to scoop the stool
into the sterile specimen cup. Close the
cover tightly.
4. Label the cup with the patient’s name, date
of birth, date and time of collection.
5. Place the specimen cup into the plastic
Biohazard bag provided.
6. Put the stool sample in a refrigerator
immediately (or put on ice) for this test. It
is very important that you do not place the
sample in the freezer. Return the sample to
the lab as soon as possible, and no later
than 48 hours after it is collected. When you
are bringing the sample to the lab, it is
important to bring it on ice. The sample
cannot be accepted and another sample will
have to be provided if it is not kept cold.
C. difficile
1. Place stool collection container (collection
hat) under toilet seat.
2. The stool collected cannot contain or be
mixed with urine.
© Children’s Hospital Boston, 2012 All rights reserved. Publication Date 4/5/12
page 1 of 2 #167599
3. Use a tongue depressor to scoop the stool
into sterile the specimen cup. Tightly close
the cover.
4. Label cup with patient name, date of birth,
time and date of collection.
5. Place the specimen cup into the plastic
Biohazard bag provided. Put this bag into
another bag filled with ice.
6. It is very important that the stool sample is
immediately refrigerated AND put on ice for
this test. Do not place the sample in the
freezer. Bring the sample to the lab as soon
as possible (no later than 48 hours after it is
collected). It is important to keep the
sample cold and on ice. You will need to
collect another sample if this is not done.
Ova and Parasite
These specimen bottles contain a
chemical that is poisonous if ingested.
Please keep these bottles out of the
reach of young children.
1. Place the stool collection container
(collection hat) under toilet seat.
2. The stool collected cannot contain or be
mixed with urine.
3. The kit for Ova and Parasite collection
contains two bottles: one with a pink cap
and the other with a blue cap. There is a
spoon attached to the cap of each bottle.
Using the attached spoon, scoop enough
stool into each bottle to bring the liquid level
in the cup up to the “Fill to Here” line.
4. Mix the contents of the tube with the spoon
provided and twist the cap tightly closed.
Shake the tube until the contents are very
well mixed.
5. Label cups with the patient’s name, date of
birth, time and date of collection, and if the
sample was formed/soft/loose/watery when
it was collected.

Family Education Sheet • Instructions for Stool Collection and
Drop-Off at Children’s Hospital Boston (Waltham)
Drop-Off Information
Return stool samples for Children's Hospital
Boston at Waltham to the Phlebotomy area.
The Phlebotomy lab is located on the 3 rd floor
in the West wing. You can drop off your
sample Monday-Friday from 8 am to 4:30 pm.
Please call, the lab in Waltham at 781-216-
1980 if you have any questions regarding the
collection process.
© Children’s Hospital Boston, 2012 All rights reserved. Publication Date 4/5/12
page 2 of 2 #167599
A Spanish version of this education sheet is
available from your provider