Introduction: Maternal competencies among mothers with infants at early infancy are sparsely described in the literature. This study explores the dimensions of competencies among mothers with infants at early infancy in the Sri Lankan context. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study was conducted using focus group discussions with mothers, fathers, and grandparents of infants aged up to 6 months and in-depth interviews with health personnel providing maternal and child health services for these mothers and infants. The Framework approach for qualitative data analysis was used to identify dimensions of parenting competencies in mothers at early infancy. Results: Five dimensions of maternal parenting competencies were identified i.e.; feeding the infant, maintaining hygiene, dealing with crying, dealing with illnesses and recognizing the normal growth and development. Conclusions: The findings can be used to develop culturally specific tools to assess the level of parenting competencies in mothers and to design maternal educational interventions to reinforce their parenting skills.

Introduction: Clinical diagnosis is mostly dependent on laboratory test results. Studies have shown that 70% of clinical laboratory samples are rejected due to pre-analytical errors. This study was conducted to assess; rejection rates of blood samples, major reasons for rejection of blood samples, and knowledge, attitudes and practice of nurses on blood sample collection. Methods: Details of rejected blood samples were collected using data sheets of rejected blood specimens at the Teaching Hospital Karapitiya, Sri Lanka. Knowledge, attitudes and practices of nursing officers on blood sample collection were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. Results: Overall blood sample rejection rate was 3.3%. The major cause of rejection of blood samples was the clotting of specimens. Insufficient volume, hemolysis, unavailability of request form for investigation, discrepancies in bed head tickets, discrepancies of the names, and use of IV line for blood collection were among the other reasons for sample rejection. The highest rejection rate was reported from the samples obtained for Prothrombin time/International Normalized Ratio (PT/INR) test. According to the scores obtained for knowledge of the nurses on blood sample collection, 43% of them scored ‘average’ while 38% scored ‘good’. The nurses’ attitudes on blood sample collection were satisfactory. Conclusions: Overall rejection rate was higher in the Haematology Laboratory of Teaching Hospital Karapitiya compared to the values reported elsewhere. Although the overall knowledge of nurses was satisfactory regarding blood sample collection, aspects such as knowledge on the correct volume of blood needed for specific investigations, choosing a suitable site for blood drawing, and practices such as the provision of duly filled investigation forms need to be improved.Keywords: Rejection rate, Pre-analytical error, Haematology, Blood, Sample collection