NHA Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA)Clinical Patient CareMedium
A medical assistant is educating a patient about collecting a 24-hour urine specimen. Which of the following instructions should the medical assistant include?
- AAdd the last morning urine specimen of the collection day to the container.
- BCollect every subsequent urination in the container for 24 hours.
- CDiscard the first morning urine specimen on the day the collection begins.
- DStore the collection container at room temperature for the duration.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Collect every subsequent urination in the container for 24 hours.
The goal of a 24-hour urine collection is to measure the total amount of a specific substance excreted over a full day. Therefore, every void after the initial discard must be collected to ensure an accurate cumulative result.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. The last morning urine specimen of the collection day should be included, not the day it begins, to complete the 24-hour cycle.
- C. The first morning urine specimen on the day the collection begins should be discarded to mark the true start of the 24-hour period with an empty bladder.
- D. 24-hour urine specimens must typically be refrigerated or kept on ice to prevent bacterial growth and degradation of analytes.
24-Hour Urine Collection
A diagnostic test involving the collection of all urine produced over a 24-hour period to measure specific substances.
- Requires discarding the first void on the start day.
- All subsequent voids for 24 hours must be collected.
- Specimen typically requires refrigeration.
Memory trick: Discard the first, then collect the rest, for 24 hours, put it to the test!