Recent studies have given special attention to burnout as an occupational outcome that affects both professionals as well as those who were cared by them, especially in areas where human contact among people is predominant. The purpose of this study is to analyze, through reviewed literature, the manifestation of burnout syndrome among Community Health Agents (CHA), emphasizing the aspects of their training and practice. The important sources of occupational stress among Brazilian CHA according to the literature searched in the Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences (Lilacs) bibliographic index were: their roll as a link between community and health services, their emotional proximity with the assisted population, and their close contact with the socio-economic problems of their environment. It was also observed that CHA training is unsatisfactory regarding humanities and social science knowledge. These issues bring up the need of changes in CHA training and working conditions, which should also benefit the workers they care for. In addition to it, the limited number of available research on CHA and burnout indicates the need for studies to consolidate these findings and the future changes in training and praxis of these agents.
burnout; occupational health; community health agents; Family Health Program