Pre-packed Blood Culture sets are provided by the Microbiology laboratory
 
 
 
 A Standard Blood Culture Set contains:-
      
 
•One Aerobic BacT/ALERT bottle (blue cap) 
      
 
•One Anaerobic BacT/ALERT bottle (purple cap) 
      
 
•Two sani-cloth wipes
      
 
•One blue adaptor cap plus needle
 
•One Sterilefield
 
•One pair medium sterile gloves
 
 
 
A Paediatric Blood Culture Set contains:-     
 
•One Paediatric BacT/ALERT bottle only (yellow cap)      
 
•One Sterilefield
 
•One pair medium sterile gloves
 
 
 
In suspected septicaemia, one set of blood cultures should be taken into BacT/ALERT bottles when the patient spikes a fever.  5-10ml of blood per bottle should be submitted. 
 
Blood cultures should be taken before starting antibiotics.  In suspected endocarditis patients, do not wait for spikes of fever, but take at least three sets of blood cultures, preferably from different sites and at different times.  State the presumptive or definitive diagnosis on the laboratory form wherever possible as some organisms will require prolonged periods of incubation.
 
 Aseptic technique is required for taking blood cultures. Advice on the collection of blood cultures is given below.
 
 
 
 
 
Adult Blood Cultures:
 
This advice is also printed of the blood culture bags.
 

• Wash hands
• Open sterile field and empty contents on to field using an aseptic non touch technique
• Put on tourniquet and prepare the skin using one Sani-cloth wipe. Use a cross hatch technique for 30 seconds and allow the skin to dry
• DO NOT re-palpate skin once decontaminated.
• Take blood cultures BEFORE taking any other samples
• Gel hands and put on sterile gloves
• Decontaminate the top of the blood culture bottles with second Sani-cloth wipe.  Allow to dry.
• Attach adaptor cap to the butterfly needle.
• Un-sheath butterfly needle and insert into the patient.
• Inoculate the blood culture bottles by pushing into the adaptor cap so the needle pierces the lid.
• Inoculate the AEROBIC (Blue) bottle FIRST when filling an adult pair (up to 10ml in each adult bottle and up to 4ml in paediatric bottle)
• Remove PPE and wash hands
• DO NOT remove the barcode labels from the bottles.
• Re-use the bag to send cultures to the laboratory ASAP – DO NOT REFRIGERATE
   
   
   
   
  Paediatric Blood Cultures:
  Collection of paediatric blood cultures should only be done by appropriately trained staff. For advice please contact the Trust paediatric team.
   
   
   
  Bacteraemia is a symptom and supportive microbiology specimens e.g. MSU, Abscess samples etc. are needed in order to identify the infection focus.