Dr. Vaccines
Home Sample Collection
A phlebotomist comes to you, draws the sample at home, and the report reaches you digitally. No queue, no travel, no time off work.
Most blood tests do not require you to be in a clinic. The sample does. Home collection separates those two things: a trained phlebotomist comes to your home or office, takes the sample there, and it travels to the lab in temperature-controlled transport.
It matters most for the people least able to spend a morning in a waiting room. Older parents who find the trip tiring, anyone recovering from illness or surgery, parents with small children, and people whose test needs a fasting sample first thing in the morning.
At a glance
What can and cannot be collected at home.
| Vaccine or test | Status | Schedule | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Routine blood panels | Recommended | Any morning slot | CBC, HbA1c, lipid profile, liver and kidney function, thyroid, vitamin levels. These form the bulk of home collection requests and are straightforward to draw and transport. |
| Fasting tests | Recommended | Early morning, 8 to 12 hours fasting | Fasting glucose and lipid profile need an overnight fast. Home collection suits these particularly well, because you are not fasting through a commute and a waiting room as well. |
| Titre and serology tests | Recommended | No fasting needed | MMR, varicella and hepatitis B serology can all be collected at home. Useful when you are assembling university or visa documentation and want it done without taking leave. |
| Urine samples | Recommended | Container provided in advance | We supply the container beforehand so the sample is ready when the phlebotomist arrives. |
| TB QuantiFERON (IGRA) | Conditional | Timing matters | Possible, but the sample must reach the laboratory within a defined window and be handled a particular way. We schedule these carefully rather than fitting them into any slot. |
| TB skin test (Mantoux) | Not advised | Clinic visit required | This is an injection followed by a reading 48 to 72 hours later, so it is not a sample collection at all. It needs two clinic visits. |
| Vaccinations | Not advised | Clinic visit required | Vaccines are given at the clinic, where cold chain is controlled and staff can observe you afterwards. Home collection is for samples going out, not vaccines coming in. |
How the visit works
The process is deliberately unremarkable, which is the point.
- You book a slot and tell us which tests you need, or bring your doctor's prescription.
- We confirm any preparation, such as fasting, the day before.
- A trained phlebotomist arrives within the slot with sealed, single-use equipment.
- The sample is labelled in front of you and sealed for transport.
- It reaches the laboratory under controlled temperature.
- Reports are delivered digitally, and a doctor can walk you through them.
Getting the preparation right
Most result problems come from preparation rather than the draw. Fasting tests need 8 to 12 hours without food, though water is fine and usually encouraged, since being well hydrated makes the draw easier.
Tell us about any medication you take. Some drugs affect specific results, and it is better to know beforehand than to repeat a test. If you are on blood thinners, mention it so the phlebotomist can apply pressure for longer afterwards.
Who this suits most
Home collection is available to anyone, but for some people it changes whether the test happens at all.
- Older parents, for whom the trip is the hardest part of the test.
- Anyone recovering from surgery or illness, or with limited mobility.
- Parents who cannot easily bring small children to a clinic.
- People managing diabetes or thyroid conditions with regular repeat testing.
- Anyone whose work makes a weekday clinic visit genuinely difficult.
- Families testing several members at once, which is simpler in one visit.
What we do not do at home
Being clear about the limits is more useful than implying everything is possible. Vaccination happens at the clinic, where the cold chain is controlled and you can be observed afterwards. The TB skin test needs two visits by its nature. Anything needing immediate processing, or specialist equipment, is better done where that equipment is.
If what you need falls outside home collection, we will say so when you book rather than after the phlebotomist arrives.
Frequently asked questions
Which tests can be done with home sample collection?
Most routine blood tests: CBC, HbA1c, lipid profile, liver and kidney function, thyroid, vitamin levels, and titre or serology tests such as MMR, varicella and hepatitis B. Urine samples are collected too. Vaccinations and the TB skin test require a clinic visit.
Do I need to fast for home collection?
Only for tests that require it, such as fasting glucose and lipid profile, which need 8 to 12 hours without food. Water is fine and being well hydrated makes the draw easier. We confirm what applies to your specific tests when you book.
How do I get my reports?
Reports are delivered digitally once the laboratory has processed the sample. If anything needs explaining, our doctors can go through the results with you rather than leaving you to interpret a page of numbers.
Is a home sample as reliable as one taken at the clinic?
Yes, provided it is handled correctly. The variables that matter are the draw technique, correct labelling and temperature-controlled transport within the required window. That is exactly why trained phlebotomists and proper transport matter more than the location.
Can you collect samples for the whole family in one visit?
Yes, and it is one of the more common requests. Tell us how many people and which tests when booking so the right slot length and equipment are allocated.
Book a home sample collection
Tell us which tests you need and a convenient morning slot. We will confirm any fasting requirement the day before so nothing has to be repeated.
Before you rely on this page
This page is general health information, not personal medical advice. Vaccine schedules depend on your age, medical history, pregnancy status, medications and previous immunisations. Our doctors will confirm what is right for you at your appointment. National recommendations are also revised periodically. We review these pages against current Indian and WHO guidance.
Last reviewed: 2026-09-01
Related pages
CBC
Complete Blood Count (CBC) Test
The most commonly ordered blood test there is, and the one that most often points to what to look at next.
HbA1c
HbA1c Test
A single blood test that shows your average blood sugar over roughly three months, with no fasting required.
Health checkup
General Health Checkups
A baseline set of tests that catches the conditions which develop quietly, chosen for what is actually common in India rather than a generic package.