I'm in the process of updating our Hematology manual. We have what I feel is a rather strange requirement. If we perform a manual differential, we are supposed to compare it to the auto diff and it has to agree within certain criteria: Percentages of Neutrophils and Lymphs have to agree within 10 cells and all "other" cells have to agree within 5 cells. Furthermore, the manual diff has to be recorded on the instrument printout in case there is a question about the results. I understand the logic behind double checking your diff results - avoids errors when performing the diff (wrong key type errors), but I have a problem with writing everything down on the printout. Currently, we are drowning in paper. We save normal CBC printouts for a month, and those with manual slides for 5 months. I want to get away from the recording of the results on the printout to save time, but am encountering resistance because no one really knows exactly why we started. It may be some obscure Joint Commission rule, but I can't find it anywhere. I've asked friends who work at other hospitals if they do it and have always gotten "NO" for an answer. Any thoughts or recommendations on this would be greatly appreciated!