PROCEDURE 3-10: Determine Urine Color and Clarity

Name______Date______Time______

PROCEDURE 3-10: Determine Urine Color and Clarity

Equipment/Supplies: Gloves, impervious gown, 10% bleach solution, patient’s labeled urine specimen, clear tube, usually a centrifuge, white paper scored with black lines, hand disinfectant, surface disinfectant

Standards: Given the needed equipment and a place to work, the student will perform this skill with _____ % accuracy in a total of _____ minutes. (Your instructor will tell you what the percentage and time limits will be before you begin.)

Notes: Rapid determination of color and clarity is necessary because some urine turns cloudy if left standing. Bilirubin, which may be found in urine in certain conditions, breaks down when exposed to light.

Protect the specimen from light if urinalysis is ordered but testing is delayed. If further testing is to be done but is delayed more than an hour, refrigerate the specimen to avoid alteration of chemistry.

Key: 4 = Satisfactory0 = UnsatisfactoryNA = This step is not counted

Procedure Steps / self / PARTNER / INSTRUCTOR
1. Washed your hands / □ / □ / □
2. Assembled the equipment / □ / □ / □
3. Put on personal protective equipment / □ / □ / □
4. Verified that the names on the specimen container and the report form were the same / □ / □ / □
5. Poured about 10 mL of urine into the tube / □ / □ / □
6. In bright light against a white background, examined the color (the most common colors are straw [very pale yellow], yellow, dark yellow, and amber [brownish yellow]) / □ / □ / □
7. Determined the urine’s clarity by holding the tube in front of the white paper scored with black lines; if lines are seen clearly (not obscured), recorded the urine as clear; if the lines could be seen but were not well delineated, recorded the urine as hazy; if the lines could not be seen at all, recorded the urine as cloudy / □ / □ / □
8. Properly cared for or disposed of equipment and supplies; cleaned the work area using a surface disinfectant; removed personal protective equipment; washed your hands / □ / □ / □

Calculation

Total Possible Points: _____

Total Points Earned: _____ Multiplied by 100 = _____

Divided by Total Possible Points = _____%

PassFail

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Student’s signature ______Date ______

Partner’s signature ______Date ______

Instructor’s signature ______Date ______