How to handle failed and held samples

Samples that failed on the analyzer, were put on hold, or went missing collect on one page. Use it to send them back for testing, or to recover results marked failed by mistake.

Before starting

• Permission to view failed and held samples
• Permission to edit test requests, for the per-row buttons and for recovery

Decide what the sample needs

Situation	Action	Where
The test failed, the sample is still usable and enough volume is left	Retest	Retest steps below
An import marked a sound run as failed	Recover	Recover a run marked failed by mistake steps below
The sample is not fit to test, and the facility must collect again	Reject with a reason	Reject
The sample cannot be found	Mark lost	Mark lost
The request was entered twice, or withdrawn	Cancel	Cancel

Do not cancel a sample to clear a failure. A cancelled sample counts as never tested and drops out of testing counts and turnaround time. A failed sample stays in the failure rate, which is the quality signal the lab needs.

What the page lists

Status	Meaning
Failed	The analyzer returned a failure or an invalid reading
Hold	The sample is paused pending a decision
Lost	The sample cannot be found

How a sample reaches Hold

No viral load screen in InteLIS sets Hold on a sample. On the Imported Results screen that follows Import Results From File, choosing Hold for a row sets that row's result aside. The result is not saved to the sample, and the sample keeps waiting for a result. A Hold sample on this page already carried that status before it arrived here.

For every status, see Sample statuses.

Follow the steps

Choose the situation, then follow its steps from top to bottom.

RetestRecover a run marked failed by mistake

1. Go to HIV VIRAL LOAD → Test Result Management → Failed/Hold Samples.
2. Check Result Status. Failed and Hold are selected by default. Add Lost if needed.
3. Narrow with the other filters if needed, such as Facility Name, Sample Collection Date or Manifest Code.
4. Select Search.

5. Tick the samples to retest. The Retest the selected samples button appears.

   To retest one sample

   Select Retest on that sample's row instead, then go to step 7.

6. Select Retest the selected samples.

7. InteLIS shows Retest has been submitted. The samples leave this list.

   What retest does

   The result is cleared and the sample leaves its batch. Its status returns to Sample Registered at Testing Lab. InteLIS keeps the failed attempt on record, so lab performance reports count both the failure and the retest.

8. Go to HIV VIRAL LOAD → Request Management → View Test Requests and search for the sample. The Status column shows Sample Registered at Testing Lab, and the result is empty.

9. Add the sample to a new batch. See How to batch samples for testing.

If the tube's barcode label is damaged

Reprint it from HIV VIRAL LOAD → Request Management → View Test Requests. Search for the sample and select Barcode on its row. The button appears only when Sample ID Barcode Label Printing under ADMIN → Settings → General Configuration is not set to Off. With a Zebra printer, if no printer is listed, select Change/Retry to pick one.

Imports made before version 5.5.20 could mark a whole run failed when the results were sound. Recovery moves those samples straight to Accepted, with no second approval step. Check each result against the analyzer printout first.

1. Go to HIV VIRAL LOAD → Test Result Management → Failed/Hold Samples.
2. Set Result Status to Failed only.
3. Narrow with the other filters if needed.
4. Select Search.

5. Tick the affected samples. The Move selected to Accepted button appears.

   To recover one sample

   Select Accept on that sample's row instead, then go to step 7. The button appears only on Failed rows that carry a usable result.

6. Select Move selected to Accepted.

7. Select OK to confirm. InteLIS shows how many samples moved, for example 3 sample(s) moved to Accepted.

   If InteLIS shows No samples were moved

   The samples carry a genuine failure result, such as Failed, Error or Invalid, or are already accepted. Genuine failures are always skipped. Retest them instead.

8. Search again with Result Status set to Failed. The recovered samples no longer appear.

Next: release the results to the requesting facility.