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Medical specimen transport

Specimen transport from collection site to laboratory, documented at every handoff

Collection-site-to-lab and interfacility specimen movement for laboratories, practices, facilities and health systems. Handling protocol, receiving cutoff, package identifier, custody events and required temperature evidence are defined before the first pickup.

Specimen transport from collection site to laboratory, documented at every handoff

Recurring pickups

Scheduled specimen routes

Contracted recurring pickups with defined delivery windows, receiver handoffs and temperature control where the material requires it. Routes are quoted on hours, distance, stops, windows, handling and reserve capacity, not mileage alone. A monthly route minimum covers committed capacity.

Route templates

Holiday exceptions, skip and pause requests and change approvals, with prior schedules preserved.

Backup coverage

Prearranged coverage for absences, peaks and disruptions so a driver gap does not become a missed cutoff.

Monthly report

On-time pickup and delivery against accepted windows, custody completeness and exception resolution.

Urgent coverage

STAT and same-day specimen runs

Time-critical direct service confirmed against real capacity. A request is not a commitment until dispatch accepts it with a specific window, so you always know whether a run is on.

Acceptance confirmation

Requested, accepted and declined jobs are clearly distinguished in the portal and in notifications.

Receiving cutoffs

Laboratory cutoffs are written into the request and checked at acceptance.

Documented receipt

Destination validated by scan, authorized recipient captured, signature or approved exception recorded.

What the record shows

Handling and temperature evidence

Each lane carries a handling protocol agreed with the receiving laboratory. Temperature control is validated for the actual material, packaging and transit duration, and excursions are escalated to your authorized laboratory contact, who decides acceptability.

Package identifiers

Unique IDs that never embed patient details, scanned at every custody event.

Temperature evidence

Monitored transport where required, with readings attached to the custody record.

Escalation

Compromised specimens and excursions go to the lab contact you name, not to a courier's judgement.

What every specimen lane specifies

  • Receiving laboratory and cutoff
  • Handling protocol and packaging
  • Temperature range and monitoring
  • Pickup window and delivery deadline
  • Package identifier and scan points
  • Exception and escalation procedure

Scope note

Bag tracking is not automatically tube-level tracking. We associate a sealed bag with its contents only to the level actually recorded, and we will not tell you otherwise. Category A infectious substances and medical waste are outside scope.

Questions

Before you switch logistics partners

All questions
Do you promise a 30- or 60-minute STAT delivery?

No. We confirm each STAT request against real capacity and accept it with a specific window. Publishing a universal delivery time before validating capacity would be a promise we could not keep.

Which laboratory receives the specimens?

The one you choose. FirstCare Logistics is destination-neutral and enforces your destination instructions on every order.

Start with one lane.

We review the lane before we quote it and propose a scoped, paid pilot with a review date in writing.

New service

Certified phlebotomists come to your patients at home, in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, or at your office, with specimen transport to the designated laboratory linked to every visit.