Care for the caregiver: Stress relief and burnout among health workers in HIV care

Introduction Health care facilities in resource-limited settings are faced with numerous challenges including high patient loads and shortage of trained health workers. However, there still remains a dearth of scientific evidence to assess and address issues associated with stress and burnout among health workers providing HIV care. Methods An annual assessment was conducted using a site capacity assessment tool to evaluate the quality of care at 18 HIV health facilities. Questions to determine stress management and HIV care among health workers were graded from 0–5 (lowest to highest score). Data on performance of health facilities were summarized on an excel sheet. Results Majority of the health facilities (67%) did not have polices or practices in place to relieve stress faced by staff in providing care for persons with HIV/AIDS.Less than half of the health facilities (44.4%) had policies on PEP, confidential HIV testing and counseling as well as referral for care and treatment for staff that are found to be HIV positive. Conclusion Evaluating and addressing issues associated with stress, burnout, as well as providing HIV care services among health workers in HIV settings is imperative for provision of good quality of care