The Best Way to Minimize the Amount of Upper Respiratory

The best way to minimize the amount of upper respiratory florae in a sputum specimen is to follow these procedures:

A) Cough up the specimen, then when the specimen gets to the lab, digest it with enzymes that will kill the normal florae.
B) When plating the specimen, ensure that the swab goes deep into the sample to get only bacteria present in the lower lung.
C) Have the patient rinse their mouth with water and expectorate with the aid of a really deep cough directly into a sterile container.
D) Have a respiratory tech decontaminate a patient's mouth and throat before the specimen is collected.