*** COVID-19 Update:  Please note we are still operational for accepting and identifying isolates.  Due to various COVID-19 limitations, it is possible the report may be delayed beyond the usual 2 week turnaround.  If you have an urgent need for identification please contact us ***

*** Thanks to increased funding from Cystic Fibrosis Canada, as of 2015 this service is now available free to all Canadian CF clinics.

Please use the requistion form available for download at the bottom of this page (now with both French and English versions available).

Requisition form (English) download here

Requisition form (Francais) download here

Sending us samples:

1.  Complete a requisition form (we do not process samples without properly completed requisition forms)

2.  Samples should be sent on transport swabs (or e-swabs, or slants) where possible.  Please do not send us samples on Petri dish plates.

3.  Samples must be packaged and sent in full accordance with TDG regulations.  This, normally means shipping by courier as a Biological Substance Category B, UN3373 classification.  If you have questions, please consult your local safety team or contact us. 

4.  It can be helpful to email us the tracking number so we can be aware to watch out for the sample.  To do so email:  cbccrrr@bcchr.ca

Further details are included below, including answers to commonly asked questions.  If the answer to your question is not there or you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.

How many samples can I send?

We welcome as many samples as you wish to send us - if this is multiple picks that is no problem. 

How often should samples be sent?

In accordance with the 2013 Infection Control Guidelines, at a minimum we recommend you send us all initial cultures of Burkholderia and then at least one sample per patient per year.  However, you are welcome to send us as many samples as you would like, including more frequently.  The reasons for submitting repeated samples are that

i) Species and strain replacement in Burkholderia infections in people with CF has been documented.   This means any initial species level identification may not be accurate on repeat cultures if the sample is not identified down to the species level.

ii) By providing repeat samples you can then receive an indication of whether or not the same clonal strain is continuing to grow.

I didn't receive a report... 

You should normally receive a report within 2 weeks of submission. If you do not receive a report please contact us (jzlosnik@bcchr.ca) and we will investigate this immediately.  

I want to see if an isolate(s) matches a previous isolate(s) from a patient or an isolate from another patient

We can perform strain level comparisons, provided we have the isolates.  

If you are regularly sending us isolates on all patients then we will be able to perform comparative strain-typing against the previous samples (this is a good reason to regularly send us samples).

If you wish to compare against another case for infection control purposes then please provide us the details on the requisition form - again we can only do this is we have the samples.

I need to know what Burkholderia a patient has for lung transplant assessment.

If you wish to know what your patient is currently culturing then we will need a current isolate to provide that information.  We can also provide the culture history to you for all the isolates we have received.  

Do you perform antimicrobial susceptibilities?

No, sorry, we do not perform antimicrobial susceptibilities on samples sent to us.  If you are a CF clinic asking for this information please contact your clinical microbiologists.