Prof Hoffie Conradie empowers healthcare workers to prevent burnout

Most people who retire stop working and start taking things slowly. Not so for Emeritus Professor Hoffie Conradie, whose passion for strengthening the decentralised learning of students and doctors in rural areas has kept him involved in this field. A 2020 Distinguished Visitor Award from the Discovery Foundation is making it possible for him to revisit three hospitals in rural parts of the Eastern Cape for three months.

Doctors need to be emotionally aware

In his three decades of practising medicine, Prof Conradie says one of the most important learnings is that being an effective doctor isn't about medical training and knowledge alone. Doctors also need to be trained to be emotionally aware.

This is where his practitioner coaching training comes in. His workshops focus on improving thought patterns, self-awareness and reflection, and developing tools to prevent burnout. He plans to present one-on-one and larger group sessions at three hospitals: Madwaleni Hospital near Elliotdale, Butterworth Hospital and All Saints Hospital in Ngcobo.

"I visited these three designated hospitals from 2016 to 2018 as part of the SUCCEED (Stellenbosch University Collaborative Capacity Enhancement through Engagement with Districts) project of the University of Stellenbosch. The aim of this project was to strengthen decentralised learning of medical students by building clinical and teaching capacity at district hospital level," Prof Conradie says.

"During my visits to Madwaleni and Zithulele hospitals in March and May 2021, I was able to interact with the healthcare professionals in group sessions to explore concepts, methods and tools to manage work-related stress and prevent burnout," he explains.

"I've also started an initiative with three other colleagues called Taking Care (www.takingcare.co.za). We offer an eight-week online course for healthcare professionals in managing stress and prevent burnout."

A fount of knowledge for young doctors

Prof Conradie's name has become synonymous with the building of capacity for teaching and learning medical students and healthcare professionals in areas such as Worcester and the Eastern Cape.

His career speaks of his dedication to healthcare and training of medical staff, including 28 years working as a medical doctor in public health and private practice in the rural Eastern Cape. He qualified as a family physician at then MEDUNSA University and became involved in postgraduate family medicine, teaching part-time.

"I joined Stellenbosch University in 2003 as a family physician and lecturer in the Department of Family Medicine and Primary Care based in Worcester. I was involved in setting up a rural postgraduate family medicine training programme, and then the initiation of the first rural clinical school for final-year medical students in South Africa," he says.

He became director of the Ukwanda Centre for Rural Health in 2007. The Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences established the centre in 2001 to facilitate training on rural platforms to give healthcare professionals applicable knowledge and practical experience. But since then, he has shared his knowledge with a growing audience.

Discovery Foundation enables capacity building to continue

Prof Conradie describes the main aim of this visits to rural hospitals. "I want to engage with medical students, student preceptors, clinical associates and other medical officers involved in the teaching of students and the family medicine registrars to build capacity in clinical reasoning, in clinical and procedural skills, and in learning and teaching. I will work alongside students and doctors in the clinical situation in the hospital wards, emergency departments and outpatient departments."

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially funded the project. When the funding ended, Prof Conradie and his colleagues applied to Discovery in the hope that they could continue the project.

He hopes that engaging with students in this rural setting would encourage them to return to rural healthcare after graduation. The mentoring and training of family medicine registrars will assist the Walter Sisulu University MMed Family Medicine Programme to produce better family physicians with a passion and unique skills for rural healthcare. This would also improve the reputation of the programme and help recruit future family medicine registrars.

"The financial implications of long journeys on poor roads to reach healthcare facilities is still the main problem for patients in rural areas. For healthcare workers, the challenges are the high workload with lack of basic resources, and the staff shortages, which can easily lead to an imbalance between work and life, with the resultant high incidence of burnout," he adds.

"I am passionate about facilitating the learning of undergraduate and postgraduate family medicine students in the clinical setting in rural areas. By encouraging healthcare workers to work in rural areas, we help to reduce the inequality in healthcare for rural communities."