Skin Penetration
Procedures
PUBLIC HEALTH (INFECTION CONTROL FOR PERSONAL APPEARANCE SERVICES) ACT 2003
This fact sheet applies to all personal appearance services that carry out skin penetration including non-higher
risk services such as electrolysis and closed ear and nose piercing.
PREPARING A CLIENT’S SKIN
Before carrying out any skin penetration procedure on
a client, their skin needs to be effectively prepared to
reduce the likelihood of infection.
Ensure the
following:
1. If the area to be penetrated is visibly dirty, wash
with soap and water to clean.
2. Before penetrating the skin with an instrument or
jewellery, apply antiseptic to the skin at and around
the piercing site. Use an antiseptic from the below
list and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
3. Before applying antiseptic ensure the client is not
allergic to an ingredient in the antiseptic.
4. Where additional skin preparation is needed after
initial skin swabbing, use a fresh alcohol swab.
5. If individually packaged 70% ethyl or isopropyl
alcohol swabs are used to prepare the skin, check
the package is intact before opening and if it isn’t
throw it out and use one that is intact.
6. If the skin undergoes cleaning and softening
before an extraction process (e.g. blackheads and
pimples) do not use a skin antiseptic as this may
irritate already sensitive skin.
7. Pour antiseptic to be used on a client into a clean,
dry container (e.g. open dish) from the stock
solution. Discard any leftover antiseptic after use.
Clean and dry the container before use on the next
client.
Antiseptic solutions:
• 70 – 80% v/v ethyl alcohol,
• 60 – 70% v/v isopropyl alcohol,
• Alcoholic (isopropyl and ethyl) formulations of 0.5 ti
4% w/v chlorhexidine,
• 10% aqueous providone-iodine (1% w/V available
iodine),
• 30% or 70% alcoholic aqueous providone-iodine
Hair removal prior to procedure:
• If the client has head hair that may touch the skin
penetration site, ask them to tie it back so the site
cannot be contaminated.
8. Swab the skin penetration site in a circular motion
starting at the centre of the site. Ensure the swab
remains moist during swabbing.
• Shave the site with a single-use disposable safety
razor where possible.
9. Ensure the skin penetration site is dry before the
skin is pierced and do not touch the site by hand
after swabbing.
Mouth piercing:
10. Do not use antiseptics that have passed the
manufacturer’s “use by” date.
Ensure the client’s mouth (including tongue, teeth and
gums) is clean, e.g. clean with toothbrush. Antiseptics
are not needed for piercing inside the mouth.
Genital piercing:
Clean the piercing site with warm water and a liquid
soap before genital piercing. Antiseptics are not
needed for genital piercing.
GLOVES
Gloves should be worn when there is a risk of
exposure to blood or body substances, to protect your
hands from contamination. However, the use of
gloves does not substitute for, or eliminate the need to
wash your hands.
Ensure the following when using gloves:
• Wash your hand before and after removing gloves,
• Do not re-use disposable gloves,
• Place contaminated sharps that are not being
disposed of into a suitable container that is clearly
identified, set aside from sterile, clean or unused
instruments and materials, and not accessible to
children,
• Check floors regularly for any accidentally dropped
instruments, and
• Place waste sharps in an appropriate sharps
container (yellow with Australian Standard mark of
approval).
SINGLE-USE DISPOSABLE INSTRUMENTS
Single-use disposable instruments must not be reused on another client and should be placed in a
waste container after use on the client.
• Discard gloves after contact with each client, as
soon as they become torn or punctured, when
performing separate procedures on the same
person and there is the risk of transferring
infectious agents from one part of the body to the
other, and when they touch un-sterile items or
surfaces, and
• Only use disposable instruments or re-usable
instruments that have been cleaned, disinfected or
sterilised,
• Inspect gloves before each use, and throw away if
peeled, cracked, discoloured, torn or punctured.
• Ensure sterile packaged equipment and jewellery
is labeled with the manufacturer’s statement that it
is sterile, and
If you suffer from a reaction from wearing a particular
type of glove, use another type of glove.
• Ensure that the sterility of the instrument is
maintained before use.
Also, general-purpose rubber gloves should be worn
when cleaning penetration instruments or cleaning up
blood and body substance spills. These rubber
gloves should be washed with detergent, rinsed and
left standing up to drain and dry after each use.
FACE PROTECTION
Face protection, such as a face shield should be worn
by the operator if there is the chance of blood or body
substances spraying from a puncture site.
HANDLING SHARPS AND INSTRUMENTS THAT
COULD PENETRATE THE SKIN
• Place contaminated sharps (e.g. jewellery,
needles, trocars) in a suitable container such as a
kidney dish or sharps waste container before
passing between persons,
• Hollow (hypodermic) needles should not be reused since they cannot be effectively cleaned and
sterilised,
MORE INFORMATION & CONTACTING
COUNCIL
If you require any further information about this or any
other Hairdressing and Skin Penetration Practice
issue, please call Council’s Customer Service Centre
on 1300 878 001.
Alternatively a range of Fact Sheets along with
information regarding other Hairdressing and Skin
Penetration issues can be accessed by visiting the
Townsville
City
Council
website
www.townsville.qld.gov.au and following the links to
Personal Appearance Services.