[Histonet] Using randomly generated anonymizing numbers for internal tracting of specimens

[Wheelock, Timothy R.]

Hi Everyone:

It appears that for security and privacy reasons, the NIH wants us to change from an internal specimen tracking system that employees sequential numbers(8634, 8635, 8636 etc.) to a system that uses randomly generated anonymizing number (20487, 71936, 88011 etc.) It seems to me that this invites mistakes and mixing up of cases. (Humans seem to deal better with sequential numbers). This would include everything, from the buckets with formaldehyde in which half brains are fixed, to wax blocks, to slides, to block and slide files, to the images that I take on each case.
                Does anyone have experience using  computer generated random anonymizing tracking numbers in their pathology or tissue banking departments? What system of checks do you employee to  avoid mistakes and make the work go smoothly? Perhaps this system will work fine, once we are used to it.

                Thank you very much for any feedback.

Tim Wheelock
Harvard Brain Bank
McLean Hospital
Belmont, MA


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