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| Press Release |
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State Begins Safety Campaign for Nail Salons and Footbaths
Salem, OR, July 2, 2001: The Oregon Health Licensing Office has launched a public education campaign to educate practitioners and consumers on how to keep nail salons healthy and safe.
You shouldn't have to face a lifetime of pain and disfigurement in the name of having beautiful fingernails or toenails. But disease and infection can be a very real threat if your nail salon is not following state standards for disinfecting tools and sanitary operations.
It will be a lifetime of challenge for the over one hundred clients of Fancy Nails in Watsonville, California that were infected with Mycobacterium fortuitum (M-fort), during September 2000. The bacteria, linked to skin tuberculosis, was spread from client to client (to client…) because of the failure of nail technicians to remove infected foreign matter from footbath screens and failure to properly disinfect the footbath in between uses on clients.
The bacteria is spread through cuts or open skin bathed in the contaminated footbath, and may only be apparent once lesions form in the affected area, usually the lower leg. The infection is controlled through aggressive use of antibiotics, however once the initial boils and skin ulcers are gone, victims are left with deep, brightly colored scars that do not heal. Removal of the scars ultimately requires skin grafting or laser surgery, or adjusting to a lifetime of disfigured skin.
As of December 2001, there have been no reports of Mycobacterium fortuitum infection spread from a manicure or pedicure service in Oregon. The nightmare surrounding this highly communicable disease is one the Health Licensing Office does not want to have cross the border into Oregon. It will take the hard work of every nail technician in the state, and the educated eyes of consumers to make sure it doesn't happen here.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A NAIL SALON
The Oregon Health Licensing Office and the Oregon Board of Cosmetology set high professional safety standards to ensure that Oregon's consumers are protected from disease transmission when they enter a state-licensed nail or cosmetology facility. Facilities are inspected annually to ensure compliance with state regulations for cosmetology safety and sanitation rules. A staff of five Health Licensing Office enforcement officers patrol beauty salons and cosmetology facilities throughout the state looking for potential violations of state standards.
"We frequently hear 'I'm very busy' as an excuse why salon owners aren't following safety standards," says Bob Gruchalla, Chief Enforcement Officer for the Health Licensing Office. "What they're really saying is the safety of my customers comes second to making money." The Health Licensing Office investigated 176 complaints involving hair salons, nail salons or facial salons during 2000, with many of the complaints alleging violations of sanitation standards.
Gruchalla adds that the inspector's work only represents a fraction of a business' annual operations. "Our inspections are extremely thorough," says Gruchalla, "but we can only evaluate the facility for that one day each year. Customers should be aware of how clean the shop is every time they come in for service."
In addition to state officers enforcing standards, Consumers should be aware of what to look for in a salon that makes customer safety a high priority. The Health Licensing Office has developed two brochures to educate the public about salon safety, one for consumers and one for nail technicians. The brochure for nail technicians stresses a commitment to safety while the consumer version focuses on what to observe about your nail salon's safety habits.
LICENSES
All nail services must be performed in a state-licensed facility with state-licensed practitioners. Each facility must post its license issued by the Health Licensing Office in public view. Each operator must also post his or her license. That license must be an original or certified duplicate and not a photocopy. A state-licensed practitioner will have completed 600 hours of training in Nail Technology prior to becoming licensed. Unlicensed activity is against Oregon regulations and should be reported to the Health Licensing Office immediately.
If you do not see a license posted, walk out of the shop.
AT THE WORKSTATION
- Look for a clean work area. The salon and workstations should be clean and free of debris and dirt. Instruments that can be disinfected should be washed and disinfected after each use, and a new set of unused disposable files should be used on each client. Used disposable tools belong in the garbage can.
- Look for a smoke-free environment with adequate ventilation. Many nail-care products are highly flammable, so smoking even by clients should not be permitted. An overwhelming smell of nail polish or polish remover, incidentally, signals inadequate ventilation and an increased fire hazard. There should be adequate ventilation to remove fumes caused by nail products.
- Look for an organized work area. Clean towels and a container of Environmental Protection Agency-registered, hospital-grade disinfectant (for storing metal tools) should be on every nail technician's table. Containers should be clearly marked with the contents.
SERVICE
- Manicurists should wash their hands with soap and water before touching a client's hands
- Instruments and supplies that cannot be disinfected, such as orange sticks and the sponges placed between the toes, should be thrown away immediately after initial use.
- The use of drills on the cuticles is legal, but cutting the skin is not. Manicures and pedicures should not be painful or leave your cuticles bloody and swollen. Drill bits should be cleaned after each client.
- Credo blades or similar razor blades are legal for use in Oregon to cut away calluses on your heel or anywhere else. The blades and any callus buffers must be cleaned and disinfected like other instruments.
- Thorough washing and disinfecting of all tools should be performed after every use. Make sure the technician is washing the instrument in hot, soapy water (not just a rinse), and that disinfectant is applied to the working portions of implements. Soiled instruments must be stored separately from clean instruments in labeled receptacles. In addition, emery boards should be discarded after every use to prevent transmission of yeast or bacterial infections from one client's nails to the next.
- Cleaning and disinfecting of work tables and other surfaces should occur after every manicure or pedicure.
- Foot spas or baths should be cleaned and disinfected after each use.
You have the right to get clear answers to your questions about procedures, materials being used and their contents.
HOW TO FILE A COMPLAINT
If you, the consumer, believe you may have been injured as the result of a nail service, you have the right to file a written complaint with the Health Licensing Office. Complaint forms can be downloaded from the agency's website, www.hlo.state.or.us. That complaint will be processed by enforcement staff followed with a possible investigation by an enforcement officer. License holders could face civil fines or potential license sanctions imposed by the Oregon Board of Cosmetology if they are found to be in violation of state standards.
If you have questions about enforcement of state regulations, please contact the Health Licensing Office Enforcement Section at 503-378-8667 extension 4310 or by e-mail to hlo.info@state.or.us
Consumers may request the brochure 'What to Look For in a Nail Salon' from the Health Licensing Office, or find both brochures available for download right now on the Health Licensing Office website, www.hlo.state.or.us - Also on the website is a consumer protection alert page dedicated to footbath safety, where you can also find out more information about the Watsonville California infection outbreak.
The Health Licensing Office is the state regulatory agency that licenses nine health-related occupations in Oregon, and issues 35,000 licenses annually.
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