Sunethra Jayathilake | University of Sri Jayewardenepura (original) (raw)

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Papers by Sunethra Jayathilake

Sri Lankan Journal of Nursing

Background and Objectives: Nurses play a crucial role as front-line care providers in every facet... more Background and Objectives: Nurses play a crucial role as front-line care providers in every facet of healthcare. Since digital technologies support and augment the quality and responsive healthcare delivery to modern healthcare systems, it is important to assess nurses’ preparedness for digital health to provide better care. This review aimed to synthesize literature on nurses’ preparedness for digital health mainly based on informatics education, competencies, challenges and barriers. Methods: A systematic search and a narrative review were carried out using scientific databases such as PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar to reach scientific literature published in the English language published between 2002 and 2022. A systematic method was followed using PRISMA (2009) flow diagram to select the articles, and data were extracted considering factors such as informative, complete and applicable timeliness of articles. Key findings were synthesized via a narrative review under identifi...

International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship

This paper presents the findings of a study comparing the post-registration midwifery curriculum ... more This paper presents the findings of a study comparing the post-registration midwifery curriculum (PRMC) taught in Sri Lanka with the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) curriculum and five other selected curricula from other parts of the world to train midwifery trained registered nurses (MTRNs). In so doing, we consider the historical origins of post-registration midwifery training and its implications for modern teachings in Sri Lanka and other low-middle income countries (LMICs). Data collected through document review are read, summarized, and compared using checklists across different curricula components, content, and length. The wide variation in terms of length of the programs, content covered, the ratio of theoretical to practical content, and the range of skills and competencies developed has implications for the individual and professional growth of MTRNs. While there is a need to align the PRMC with the ICM standards to ensure safer maternity care in Sri Lanka, ...

Journal of Holistic Nursing And Midwifery, 2021

Introduction: A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multi-professional m... more Introduction: A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multi-professional maternity health care team in Sri Lanka. Her contribution to the maternity care team is poorly understood, often undermined, and undefined. In the context of low- and middle-income settings where traditional midwives play a crucial role in domiciliary care, the MTRNs role as a member of the multi-professional hospital-based maternity care team has not been well-described. Objective: The study aimed to describe MTRNs' perceptions of their role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team at five tertiary care hospitals in the Capitol Province of Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 186 MTRNs working in labor rooms in the study setting. All MTRNs in the selected hospitals were invited and included in the sample. A postal survey was carried out using a pre-evaluated, pretested self-administered questionnai...

Objective: To explore midwifery-trained registered nurses’ perceptions of their own profession as... more Objective: To explore midwifery-trained registered nurses’ perceptions of their own profession as maternity care providers and how they identify their role, tasks, and responsibilities within a mul ...

Journal of Holistic Nursing and Midwifery, 2021

A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multiprofessional maternity health... more A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multiprofessional maternity health care team in Sri Lanka. Her contribution to the maternity care team is poorly understood, often undermined, and undefined. In the context of low-and middle-income settings where traditional midwives play a crucial role in domiciliary care, the MTRNs role as a member of the multi-professional hospital-based maternity care team has not been well-described. Objective: The study aimed to describe MTRNs' perceptions of their role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team at five tertiary care hospitals in the Capitol Province of Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 186 MTRNs working in labor rooms in the study setting. All MTRNs in the selected hospitals were invited and included in the sample. A postal survey was carried out using a pre-evaluated, pretested self-administered questionnaire, and descriptive statistics were derived. Results: All respondents were females, aged 27 to 60 years (Mean±SD: 40±8.3 years). The majority (66%) was less than 45 years old. Almost all (>96%) MTRNs perceived 12 tasks of the listed tasks as their primary responsibility. Regarding other tasks, they perceived a high degree of overlap between their role and those of the doctors and midwives. Although almost all MTRNs rated the level of interprofessional collaboration from Registered Nurses (RNs) and doctors as average to good, nearly half (49%) of them rated support from midwives ranging from very poor to average. Conclusion: A high degree of perceived overlap between MTRNs' tasks with those of the other members of the maternity care team can cause role confusion, conflicts, and poor patient care. MTRNs' role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team was controversial. Clarifying the MTRNs scope of practice will help improve interprofessional understanding of roles and responsibilities and collaboration.

In developed countries healthcare professionals such as nurses and midwives have wellestablished ... more In developed countries healthcare professionals such as nurses and midwives have wellestablished and clearly defined legal and professional boundaries (Sharma et al., 2012). For example in Canada, the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia (CRNNS) and the College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Nova Scotia (CLPNNS) have written guidelines providing a frame work for assigning or delegating tasks and roles to different professional groups within the health care team (CRNNS AND CLPNNS, 2012). The situation is different in many developing countries. For example, in India the role of auxiliary nurse midwives working within hospitals is unclear and poorly defined (Sharma et al., 2012). Even though midwives and nurses play a pivotal role in maternity health care teams, their role and scope of practice is not clearly defined and this can be a contentious issue among multi-professional healthcare teams.

Sri Lankan Journal of Nursing

Background and Objectives: Nurses play a crucial role as front-line care providers in every facet... more Background and Objectives: Nurses play a crucial role as front-line care providers in every facet of healthcare. Since digital technologies support and augment the quality and responsive healthcare delivery to modern healthcare systems, it is important to assess nurses’ preparedness for digital health to provide better care. This review aimed to synthesize literature on nurses’ preparedness for digital health mainly based on informatics education, competencies, challenges and barriers. Methods: A systematic search and a narrative review were carried out using scientific databases such as PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar to reach scientific literature published in the English language published between 2002 and 2022. A systematic method was followed using PRISMA (2009) flow diagram to select the articles, and data were extracted considering factors such as informative, complete and applicable timeliness of articles. Key findings were synthesized via a narrative review under identifi...

International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship

This paper presents the findings of a study comparing the post-registration midwifery curriculum ... more This paper presents the findings of a study comparing the post-registration midwifery curriculum (PRMC) taught in Sri Lanka with the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) curriculum and five other selected curricula from other parts of the world to train midwifery trained registered nurses (MTRNs). In so doing, we consider the historical origins of post-registration midwifery training and its implications for modern teachings in Sri Lanka and other low-middle income countries (LMICs). Data collected through document review are read, summarized, and compared using checklists across different curricula components, content, and length. The wide variation in terms of length of the programs, content covered, the ratio of theoretical to practical content, and the range of skills and competencies developed has implications for the individual and professional growth of MTRNs. While there is a need to align the PRMC with the ICM standards to ensure safer maternity care in Sri Lanka, ...

Journal of Holistic Nursing And Midwifery, 2021

Introduction: A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multi-professional m... more Introduction: A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multi-professional maternity health care team in Sri Lanka. Her contribution to the maternity care team is poorly understood, often undermined, and undefined. In the context of low- and middle-income settings where traditional midwives play a crucial role in domiciliary care, the MTRNs role as a member of the multi-professional hospital-based maternity care team has not been well-described. Objective: The study aimed to describe MTRNs' perceptions of their role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team at five tertiary care hospitals in the Capitol Province of Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 186 MTRNs working in labor rooms in the study setting. All MTRNs in the selected hospitals were invited and included in the sample. A postal survey was carried out using a pre-evaluated, pretested self-administered questionnai...

Objective: To explore midwifery-trained registered nurses’ perceptions of their own profession as... more Objective: To explore midwifery-trained registered nurses’ perceptions of their own profession as maternity care providers and how they identify their role, tasks, and responsibilities within a mul ...

Journal of Holistic Nursing and Midwifery, 2021

A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multiprofessional maternity health... more A Midwifery Trained Registered Nurse (MTRN) is a member of the multiprofessional maternity health care team in Sri Lanka. Her contribution to the maternity care team is poorly understood, often undermined, and undefined. In the context of low-and middle-income settings where traditional midwives play a crucial role in domiciliary care, the MTRNs role as a member of the multi-professional hospital-based maternity care team has not been well-described. Objective: The study aimed to describe MTRNs' perceptions of their role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team at five tertiary care hospitals in the Capitol Province of Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 186 MTRNs working in labor rooms in the study setting. All MTRNs in the selected hospitals were invited and included in the sample. A postal survey was carried out using a pre-evaluated, pretested self-administered questionnaire, and descriptive statistics were derived. Results: All respondents were females, aged 27 to 60 years (Mean±SD: 40±8.3 years). The majority (66%) was less than 45 years old. Almost all (>96%) MTRNs perceived 12 tasks of the listed tasks as their primary responsibility. Regarding other tasks, they perceived a high degree of overlap between their role and those of the doctors and midwives. Although almost all MTRNs rated the level of interprofessional collaboration from Registered Nurses (RNs) and doctors as average to good, nearly half (49%) of them rated support from midwives ranging from very poor to average. Conclusion: A high degree of perceived overlap between MTRNs' tasks with those of the other members of the maternity care team can cause role confusion, conflicts, and poor patient care. MTRNs' role in the Labor Unit within the multi-professional maternity health care team was controversial. Clarifying the MTRNs scope of practice will help improve interprofessional understanding of roles and responsibilities and collaboration.

In developed countries healthcare professionals such as nurses and midwives have wellestablished ... more In developed countries healthcare professionals such as nurses and midwives have wellestablished and clearly defined legal and professional boundaries (Sharma et al., 2012). For example in Canada, the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia (CRNNS) and the College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Nova Scotia (CLPNNS) have written guidelines providing a frame work for assigning or delegating tasks and roles to different professional groups within the health care team (CRNNS AND CLPNNS, 2012). The situation is different in many developing countries. For example, in India the role of auxiliary nurse midwives working within hospitals is unclear and poorly defined (Sharma et al., 2012). Even though midwives and nurses play a pivotal role in maternity health care teams, their role and scope of practice is not clearly defined and this can be a contentious issue among multi-professional healthcare teams.