Ethics Framework 1.1 Introduction to Ethics in IEMT

Ethics in IEMT Practice: Lesson 1.1

Introduction to Ethics in IEMT

Welcome

Welcome to the Ethics in IEMT Practice series, produced by The Association for IEMT Practitioners. Integral Eye Movement Technique (IEMT) works with a person's emotional responses, memories and sense of identity. People often come to a practitioner at a difficult time and trust them with private information. Ethics is how practitioners earn and keep that trust.

This first lesson explains why ethics matters in IEMT, where to find the standards you work to, and how the rest of the course is organised.

One of the essential qualities of the clinician is interest in humanity, for the secret of the care of the patient is in caring for the patient.

Francis W. Peabody, “The Care of the Patient”, JAMA 1927;88:877–882

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Explain why ethics matters in IEMT and what it protects.
Say where IEMT sits in relation to regulated professions, and what that means for you.
Name the main sources of ethical standards for Association members.
Describe how this course is organised and which law it describes.

What is ethics in practice?

Ethics is the set of moral principles that guide our decisions and actions. In professional work it comes down to a few plain questions. Is this in the client's interest? Does the client understand and agree? Could this cause harm? Am I being honest? Would I be comfortable explaining what I did to the client, to a colleague and to the Association?

Ethics is not only about keeping to rules. It is about judgement: noticing when a situation is not straightforward and knowing what to do next. This course aims to help you build that judgement.

Clear ethical practice supports three things:

Trust. Clients can speak openly without fear of judgement or harm.
Safety. Distress is noticed and handled, and work stops when it should.
Professionalism. Practitioners keep to consistent, honest standards of conduct.

Why ethics matters in IEMT

IEMT is a short, structured technique that uses guided eye movements while a person thinks about a memory or a feeling. Several features of the work raise the ethical stakes:

Clients may be recalling distressing events, so strong feelings can arise quickly.
The practitioner leads the process, so there is an imbalance of knowledge and power.
The evidence base for IEMT is limited and still emerging. Honesty about what is and is not known belongs in every conversation with a client.
Clients may be vulnerable because of age, mental health, circumstances or a strong wish to find a solution.
Many practitioners work alone, with no employer, on-site supervisor or regulator looking at their work.

IEMT and regulation

IEMT is not a statutorily regulated profession in the United Kingdom. The Association's register is voluntary and is not accredited by the Professional Standards Authority. Completing IEMT training does not give you a licence to diagnose or treat any condition, and it does not by itself give you the title of therapist.

An IEMT certificate confirms training in a defined technique. It does not create a healthcare licence…

The Association for IEMT Practitioners, Scope of Practice Policy, “The core rule”

With no statutory regulator, no outside body sets the rules or checks your work. That makes your own ethical practice more important, not less. It also means you can look to the standards of regulated professions as a benchmark, while treating the Association's own policies as your first reference.

Where the standards come from

Use these sources, in this order:

Source	What it is	How to use it
The Association's policies	The policies, including the Standards of Competence, Scope of Practice Policy, Safeguarding Policy and Breaking Confidentiality Without Consent Policy.	Binding on members. Your first reference. Lesson 1.3 maps them.
The law	Consent and capacity, data protection, equality, safeguarding, advertising and consumer law.	Applies to everyone, whatever your training or membership.
Your insurer and other bodies	Policy conditions, any employer, and any other professional body you belong to.	Often stricter than the Association. A higher standard always applies.
Benchmarks from regulated professions	The GMC's Good medical practice (2024), the HCPC's Standards of conduct, performance and ethics (2024), the BACP's Ethical Framework and the World Medical Association's Declaration of Geneva and Declaration of Helsinki.	Not binding on you unless you are also registered with them. They show what good practice looks like, and this course draws on them.

These documents are revised from time to time. For example, the BACP's new Ethical Framework 2026 becomes mandatory for its members on 3 November 2026. Always check that you are reading the current version.

How this course is organised

Module 1: Foundations. The core principles, the Association's standards and policies, and honest claims about evidence.
Module 2: Working with clients. Consent, boundaries, confidentiality, scope and screening, records and data protection, and equality.
Module 3: Children and young people. Safeguarding, children's rights, Gillick competence, boundaries and reporting.
Module 4: Professional integrity. Integrity, dilemmas, complaints and supervision, candour, risk and crisis, and remote practice.
Module 5: Cases and review. Worked cases and simulations, then a knowledge check.
Appendices. Source texts: the Hippocratic Oath, the Gillick case, ethics of advertising, and the Declarations of Helsinki and Geneva.

Scotland, Northern Ireland and elsewhere

The legal points in this course describe the law in England and Wales. Where Scotland or Northern Ireland differ in an important way, a short box like this one says so. If you practise in another country, check your local law, your insurer's requirements and any professional body you belong to. This course is not legal advice.

Self-Reflection Exercise

Take 5 to 10 minutes to consider the following questions:

Why did you train in IEMT, and what do you hope clients will say about their experience of you?
What responsibilities do you feel towards your clients, and towards the public?
Have you faced a situation where the right course of action was unclear? What did you do, and what would you do now?

Write your reflections in a journal or workbook. You may want to discuss them in supervision.

Key Takeaways

Ethics protects trust, safety and professionalism, and matters more where there is no statutory regulator.
IEMT is a defined technique. An IEMT certificate is not a healthcare licence and does not by itself confer the title of therapist.
The Association's policies are your first reference, then the law, your insurer, and benchmarks from regulated professions.
This course describes law and guidance for England and Wales as at October 2026.

Next Steps

In Lesson 1.2 we look at the five core ethical principles that underpin the rest of the course, and how to weigh them when they pull in different directions.

This ethics series is produced by The Association for IEMT Practitioners and is intended for professional development purposes. It describes law and guidance for England and Wales as at October 2026 and is not legal advice. Always follow your local law, your insurer’s conditions, safeguarding procedures and your professional judgement.