(4) Procedures and Equipment.
(a) All technical procedures employed in the laboratory shall be the standard procedures which are generally accepted by leading authorities in microbiology, serology, chemistry, hematology, immunohematology, biophysics, cytotechnology, and histopathology as applicable or are equivalents approved by the Alabama Department of Public Health.
(b) There shall be quality control procedures in effect, including the use of reference and control sera and other biological samples, calibrating standards, and control charts.
(c) All equipment shall be in good working order, routinely checked and , and documentation of checks and calibrations shall be maintained.
(d) Syringes, needles, lancets, or other blood-letting devices capable of transmitting infection from one person to another shall be cleaned and sterilized prior to each use. Each sterilizing cycle shall contain an indicator device which assures proper sterilization. Independent Clinical Laboratories Chapter 420-5-8 and Independent Physiological Laboratories
(e) A specimen received by a laboratory shall not be tested or reported if:
1. The apparent condition of the specimen indicates that it isunsatisfactory for testing or that it is inappropriate for the test requested.
2. It has been collected, labeled, preserved, or otherwise handled in such a manner that it has become unsatisfactory or unreliable as a specimen.
3. It is perishable and the time lapse between the collection of the specimen and its receipt by the laboratory is of such duration that
the test finding may no longer be reliable.
4. When a specimen is not tested for any of the reasons specified in AAC Rule 420-5-8.04(4)(e), the laboratory shall promptly notify the sender and give the reason therefore.
(f) Notebooks or manuals containing appropriate current laboratory methods shall be maintained.