What happens to my blood after they take a blood test?
You probably saw that your blood was squirted from the syringe into small tubes. The tubes have different coloured labels on them. Your name, your hospital number and the date are written onto all the tubes so that people will know that it is your blood.
It looks like a lot of blood but you have much more than that left inside you so it is quite safe
The coloured tubes go to different parts of the laboratory so that all sorts of tests can be done. Some go to the haematology department for a “full blood count” to see whether you are anaemic etc. Some to the biochemistry department to test how well parts of your body are working eg your kidneys and liver. Some are such complicated tests that they take a long time to do and have to go to another specialist laboratory. The results go on to a computer so your doctor can find them as soon as they are ready.