The psychological safety of specialists involved in the organization and provision of psychological assistance in war conditions

Abstract

The aim. To provide an analysis of the theoretical foundations and practical approaches to addressing the issue of psychological safety for specialists involved in the organization and provision of psychological assistance in war conditions. Materials and methods. The research employed the bibliographic method, method of analysis, and synthesis of scientific materials from academic sources. Results and discussion. A detailed analysis of several scientific studies revealed that among the main prerequisites for the emergence of emotional burnout in helping professionals, two directions are traditionally identified: the characteristics of professional activities and the psychological characteristics of the specialist. In the context of the question about the psychological changes that can occur in professionals during their professional activities, we have examined the phenomenon of secondary trauma or secondary traumatic stress, which refers to the trauma experienced by a professional while providing psychological assistance. In the literature on crisis psychology, the phenomenon of burnout is often equated with the phenomenon of secondary trauma due to the following reasons: 1) both states tend to accumulate over time, and 2) they have similar consequences (insomnia, depressed mood, impaired communication with social environment and family).However, a detailed analysis of these phenomena indicates the presence of differences, primarily in the characteristics of their emergence. Conclusion. The main safety rules for assisting specialists, compliance with which is necessary to maintain their professional well-being, include: awareness of one's abilities and the limits of one's competence;having an understanding of one's vulnerabilities and assessing one's capabilities and risks when working with cases that involve heightened emotional sensitivity; tracking changes in one's emotional and physical state, as well as changes in behavior; seeking help from superiors when needed;when dealing with challenging crisis events and their aftermath, working better in pairs with colleagues. This is necessary for maintaining emotional balance for each specialist working in a pair and for the ability to rely on each other during consultations or group psychological work;participating periodically in supervision groups or receiving supervision.Following these rules is essential for preserving the emotional well-being of each specialist and enables them to rely on support systems such as working in pairs and seeking supervision or consultation when needed.