Hygiene, 20 commandments of the tattoo artist

We already know what tattoo equipment looks like. It's time to understand what to do to maintain health and safety at work, and what is bad and what should be avoided.

COMMANDMENTS!

1. We thoroughly clean the workplace before and after the procedure! (Double disinfection of the stand is very important. Often we cannot determine if during our absence in the studio there was contamination immediately before the tattoo. Example: A client of a colleague from a position next to him put his shoes there; without contaminated biological material).
2. The workplace and reusable equipment (machines, power source, workplace) are protected by impermeable material. For example, a two-layer foil backing, plastic wrap or special plastic bags / sleeves.
3. Anything that we cannot 100% safe or sterilize should be ONE APPLICATION.
4. We only use gloves made of durable materials such as NITRILE, do not use latex gloves. (Latex may cause allergic reactions in some customers. If we use petroleum jelly or other oily substances, they dissolve the latex, creating gaps for microorganisms to pass through.)
5. Apply Vaseline with a spatula or directly with a CLEAN glove.
6. Always shake the vial thoroughly to mix the pigment and thinner into a uniform mixture. Unscrew the cap from the mascara only with a clean disposable towel. We infuse air into the cups so that the ink contaminated with biological material does not come into contact with the sterile ink in the bottle. If you touch the ink bottle with gloves, be sure to replace it before starting the procedure.
7. The skin is thoroughly disinfected and degreased before processing (for example, with a skin disinfectant).
8. The drawing is always printed with gloves using Dettol or a special preparation for transferring tracing paper.
9. Avoid touching unprotected objects during operation. We do not touch phones, lamps, headphones or loose handles in the workplace.
10. For rinsing the needle and making soap, we use only demineralized, distilled or reverse osmosis water.
11. Cleaning pipes in a washer is not sterilization (you will not kill HIV, HSV, hepatitis C, etc.).
12. We do not pack materials left over from processing. Inks, petroleum jelly, towels - they can all be contaminated.
13. We only store safe items on the tattoo stand. It is not responsible for storing ink bottles, glove boxes or other items that are not fixed to the same level on the workstation. After processing, germs can be detected at a distance of up to a meter from the client and the ink tanks. If there are gloves next to it, the tiny droplets will almost certainly have gotten inside the package!
14. Cups, sticks, packages and it is advisable to store everything in closed containers / boxes so as not to get dusty
15. The needles must always be new! ALWAYS!
16. The needles become dull, bent and break, it is worth replacing them if we use the same needles for more than 5-6 hours.
17. We don’t throw needles in the trash! Someone can get pricked and become infected, buy one medical waste container and put it there! Waste is kept in the refrigerator for up to 30 days, waste outside the refrigerator for only 7 days!
18. We do not use reusable tubes if we do not have a sterilizer. The washing machine is not a sterilizer, changing the spouts themselves does nothing, because the pipe is also dirty inside. This remark is especially important for people who have a PEN machine. Do not forget to wrap the pipe with an elastic bandage, otherwise the foil will not protect it from the inside. This is where many bacteria can enter.
19. Place the torn towels on a base / foil or other clean surface and wear gloves.
20. We think that what we are doing nothing can replace common sense. If you are unsure if something might violate safety and hygiene rules, ask more experienced colleagues.