CUSTOMER INFORMATION
- In order for hygiene to be maintained in the studio, you as a customer must be aware of certain things.
- Under no circumstances may you put your hands in or touch the bins. Should you throw something away, ask the tattooist.
- You may not touch or place your personal items with your hands on any surfaces or wrapped objects.
- During the tattooing process, you must not scratch or touch the tattoo. Should it still happen, you MUST inform your tattoo artist immediately and your hands must be washed with hand disinfectant. If you touch the tattoo, the risk of infection increases.
- In the breaks during the course of work, you must be careful not to bump into anything, when visiting the toilet, wash your hands thoroughly.
- For the sake of you and others, be careful.
Hygienic work methods when tattooing
We work actively to ensure that our jobs are carried out with the utmost safety and follow the laws and regulations that prevail. We work with continuous risk assessment. Please read more at the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen).
PREPARATION BEFORE WORK
- During the course of the work, you must not wear jewelry or watches on your hands and arms or a long-sleeved shirt. Long hair should be up.
- All preparations before work are carried out with well-washed hands, well lubricated with hand disinfectant. Hands are washed and disinfected continuously. In Sweden, 30 seconds is acceptable for hand washing.
- The work surface must be disinfected before work materials are placed on it.
- Everything that will be used and touched during the course of the work must be wrapped in plastic if it is not disposable material. If a risk exists, the risk must be eliminated.
- All materials used in the procedure should be sterile or highly clean.
- Needle and tube/cartridge and grip must be sterile and fitted with gloves on. This applies to all types of tattoo machines (pens, rotarys, coil machines, etc.)
- Written routines must exist for maintaining good hygiene in connection with the treatments.
These hygiene and protection routines must always be so extensive that a customer with unknown MRSA or blood infection must not pose any risk of infection spreading.
DURING THE WORK
- The skin is shaved with a disposable razor and washed off with the correct agent for the purpose.
- During the course of the work, the tattoo machine may under no circumstances be placed on a surface other than the previously disinfected and wrapped work surface.
- Everything that comes into contact with the skin must be sterile or disposable.
- If something is to be touched that is not wrapped in plastic, take off the gloves and spray your hands first.
- Under no circumstances should the nozzle of the paint bottle be dipped into the paint cup if you need to add paint, or touch the surface that has come into contact with blood or skin.
- Under no circumstances may the customer touch the workstation, wastebasket or the tattoo. Under no circumstances should anything that may come into contact with other customers, or with you, be touched with bloody gloves.
- Remember that liquids, vaseline, alcohol etc. affect the life of the glove, change regularly. Most manufacturers guarantee 15-20 minutes of life in use.
- The machine and any cord and power supply must be wrapped in plastic during the work.
AFTER COMPLETED WORK
- The work surface is removed with new disposable gloves on. Remove all plastic without touching anything inside the plastic with the glove (e.g. bottle, cord or machine).
- All plastics, spatulas, paint cups, etc. should be thrown away. Needles and razors must be disposed of in the appropriate container for hazardous waste.
- If disposable tubes are not used, these must be placed in ultrasonic cleaning/ undergo mechanical cleaning and then placed in an autoclave for sterilization.
- Remove the gloves. Wash your hands.
- Wash the entire work surface with surface disinfectant to minimize the risk of cross-contamination.
