Health & Safety

Insurance

There are many companies that can provide you with insurance - it is important that you do not work without it. You must also ensure that you have received certificates for your qualification(s). You can join professional bodies such as BABTAC or The Guild. These companies can offer insurance and help you with any professional questions you may have. If you need to practice before working on clients, you must ensure your model signs a model form – this can be obtained from our head office in PDF format.

Check Your Vision

Along with a steady hand, carrying out our eyelash and eyebrow treatments requires good eyesight; we recommend you have your eyesight checked regularly. Focussing on eyelashes or brows for more than an hour at a time can be very tiring. As your eyes get tired your vision may become blurred and you may have difficulty with focussing. If this occurs, take a break and relax your eyes. A magnification lamp or reading glasses may be of use to you. For eyes that become dry, use an appropriate eye drop to freshen and soothe them. Do not proceed with the treatment if you remain unable to focus clearly for any reason.

Hygiene

Effective and thorough hygiene practice is essential when providing any type of beauty treatment in the salon as well as when providing treatments at home. Poor practice can lead to cross-infection and secondary infection for yourself and for your client. Infection can be recognised by redness of the skin, itching, inflammation or the visible presence of pus-filled blister like lesions. Cross-infection occurs because some micro-organisms are contagious – they may be transferred through personal contact or by contact with an instrument that has not been sterilised or disinfected correctly. Secondary infection can be caused by working on or around an area that has already been affected by an infection. Sterilisation and sanitisation procedures are used to minimise or destroy the harmful micro-organisms which could cause infection. It is key to ensure hands are thoroughly cleaned. The best way to clean your hands is to wash them in hot soapy water and then dry them with a clean paper towel.

Personal Hygiene

Impeccable personal hygiene is essential in a profession where you will be working closely with other people.

• You should always wash your hands before and after each client using an antibacterial hand wash. Remember, it takes up to three minutes to thoroughly destroy all germs.
• Nails should be manicured, and your nail polish should never be chipped
• Wear a clean beauty tunic
• Ensure your hair is clean and tied back with no loose hair falling forward
• Wear natural, well applied make up
• Ensure that your perfume is not too strong
• Avoid eating food that will make your breath unpleasant and keep your breath fresh with mints, but avoid chewing gum.

Professionalism in the Salon or Working Environment

Every client should be confident that their treatment is performed using the correct products in a clean and comfortable environment. The list below lays out the areas which must always be considered when working in the beauty industry, be it within a salon or working from your own or your customers’ home.

• Always perform an accurate consultation for each client
• Never eat or drink in the working area
• Drugs and alcohol should never be used when working
• Waste must be disposed of correctly and hygienically by using a bin bag which should be sealed after use and placed in the dustbin
• Dirty laundry should be placed in a covered container, or a laundry bag, to be washed
• Towels and headbands must be washed at 60 degrees
• Use new clean disposable applicators on each client and place in the waste after use
• Use spatulas to remove products from any containers. You should never put your fingers into pots or bottles of products that are going to be used on someone else
• Sterilised instruments should be stored hygienically
• Replace lids or caps on all products
• Instruments, including tweezers, should be sterilised prior to each treatment
• Use couch roll on the beauty bed and ensure it is renewed after each client
• Have a bottle of hand sanitiser on your trolley to use during the treatment, but remember that it is not a suitable substitute for washing your hands in soapy water.

What is Sterilisation?

Sterilisation is the process of making something free from bacteria or other living microorganisms. Instruments should be sterilised between clients, however, some products used in treatments cannot be sterilised – in this case, you should sanitise where possible and use the most hygienic practice to ensure your clients’ safety as well as your own. An example of a product that you cannot sterilise is the Cleansing Cloth – the best practice for this product is to wash thoroughly and store in a sealed container, keeping it fresh for each client. Used disposable items must be thrown away immediately after use.

Reasons Why We Sterilise

Sterilisation is a term that refers to any process that kills all forms of microbial life. This includes all fungi, bacteria, viruses and spore forms that could be present on any surface or contained in a liquid. For items to be effectively sterilised, they must be washed clean and be free from grease prior to the sterilisation process.