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The principle “Do no harm”, although not contained verbatim in the Hippocratic Oath, is its basis and has become a natural basis for the work of doctors and psychologists working in fields close to medicine.
At different times, the principle «Do no harm» had a different interpretation. For example,
Until the XNUMXth century, surgery was not the work of doctors, but of barbers. Ignorant and goofy, the barbers used methods of treatment more like torture on their patients, blindly copying the techniques used by their «teachers». Doctors, literally observing the “Do no harm” rule, were too “ethical” to “cut”, therefore, in theory, they should not even look at the work of “surgeons” — barbers. And yet the operation, if it was carried out according to the rules, was carried out under the guidance of a learned doctor who sat at the pulpit and loudly read out the instructions to the «surgeon» — the barber. Since the doctor used classical Latin, the illiterate barber did not understand a word. It is clear that if the patient died, the blame was placed on the barbarian surgeon, and if he survived, then the specialist doctor reaped the fruits of success. With any outcome of events, the doctor also received the lion’s share of the fee …
It is clear that over time the situation has improved. The surgeon has the right and duty to damage the skin of the patient, if necessary to save his life.
The principle of «Do no harm» and the Code of Ethics of a practical psychologist
The principle «Do no harm» is necessarily present in any ethical code of a practical psychologist, but depending on the specifics of the contingent and the nature of the psychologist’s activity, it can have a different interpretation. See the “Do No Harm” Principle and the Code of Ethics of the Practical Psychologist
In the case of psychotherapeutic work with patients who are in a difficult life situation and are experiencing serious problems. the principle of «do no harm» is of paramount importance and must be observed as strictly as possible.
In the case of work on personality development with psychologically mature and mentally healthy people who are in a high emotional tone, the principle of “do no harm” is less relevant and gives way to other tasks that are more important for the participants in the training.
The participants of the training are no longer afraid that they will be harmed, but they will be very sorry for their precious time if they sit at the training in complete safety and leave the training with nothing. People come to training for work and for workload. They are ready for difficulties, they are protected from injuries and are not afraid of injuries, they need vigorous study.
Do No Harm Principle and Training Qualification Badges
The system of qualification badges, if it does not fully implement the principle of «do no harm», then significantly reduces the risk of psychological trauma among unprepared participants. See Training Qualification Badges