. 2018 May 24;10(1):1568. doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v10i1.1568

TABLE 6.

Strategies to assist health care workers in avoiding burnout.

Focus of strategy	Strategies mentioned
Increased resilience among individuals	Mentoring programmes¹⁹
	Developing life skills^19,20,21 (Boundary setting, finding work–life balance and self-care)
	Reflective practice²¹
	Balint groups²²
	Mindfulness training^19,23,24,25
	Maintaining certain attitudes¹⁹ (acceptance and realism, self-awareness and reflexivity, recognising when change is necessary and appreciating the good things)
Improving the work environment and job satisfaction	Practising patient centredness²⁰
	Increased continuity of care^18,20
	Develop and support doctors to practise in their field of interest^16,19,20,26
	Reduction of the administrative load of clinicians^16,19,20
	Reduction of frustration of clinicians (ensuring that sufficient equipment and support is available)^19,20
	Measuring burnout levels among clinicians and developing a strategy^19,20
	Use of locums or contract posts during periods of annual leave or maternity leave of permanent staff¹⁶
	Appointing adequate staff numbers¹⁶
Increased professional autonomy	Allowing doctors to adjust working schedules and working hours^{1,17,19,20,26}
	Allowing clinicians to plan their leave^17,19 (allowing leave for birthdays, family responsibilities and participation in other interests)
	Use of flexible working hours according to peak patient load^17,19,26

Note: Please see the full reference list of the article, Liebenberg AR, Coetzee JF Jr, Conradie HH, Coetzee JF. Burnout among rural hospital doctors in the Western Cape: Comparison with previous South African studies. Afr J Prm Health Care Fam Med. 2018;10(1), a1568. https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v10i1.1568, for more information.