Addressing Health Worker Burnout to Improve the Quality of Patient Care

Burnout can contribute to poor health worker functioning, although its true impact on the quality of patient care is not well understood. The demanding nature of the healthcare environment necessitates health workers to make cognitive and behavioral efforts to cope with and ensure longevity in service. Thus, this review explored the available evidence on the mechanisms involved in addressing work stress and burnout in the healthcare workplace. Several individual coping mechanisms and institutional interventions have been identified. Further studies are needed to establish the effectiveness of documented interventions in reducing burnout and improving job performance and quality of care.