Phil is collecting blood from a finger-stick. Phil is concerned he may not have collected enough blood drops; he is worried he may have to re-stick his patient. Phil is able to squeeze out a few more drops of blood by squeezing and milking the fingertip. What (if anything) did Phil do wrong, and why?
  1. Phil did not do anything wrong.
  2. Phil should not milk the site; milking hurts the patient more than a re-stick.
  3. Phil should not squeeze and milk the site; fluid from the fingertip tissue may be squeezed into the blood drops.
  4. Phil contaminated the site and sample by squeezing and milking.
Explanation
Answer: C - Excessive squeezing and milking of a fingertip may cause fluid in the fingertip tissue to leak into the blood, possibly resulting in inaccurate test results. Avoiding callused areas, selecting the third or fourth finger of the non-dominant hand, massaging towards the intended puncture site prior to sticking, and applying gentle pressure while collecting the blood drops, are methods to avoid Phils mistake.
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