A. No practitioner shall engage in body piercing or tattooing in Upper Dublin Township unless the premises at which such activity is to be conducted and the equipment to be utilized in conjunction therewith meets the following standards:
(1) The room in which body piercing or tattooing is done shall have an impervious, smooth and cleanable surface on the floor, walls and ceiling.
(2) A toilet shall be adjacent to the area where body piercing or tattooing is performed. The lavatory shall be supplied with hot and cold running water, soap and single-use disposable towels.
(3) All tables shall be constructed of easily cleanable, impervious materials, and shall be separated from waiting patrons or observers by a panel at least six feet high for privacy.
(4) The entire premises and equipment shall be maintained in a clean, sanitary condition and in good repair.
(5) The license issued by Upper Dublin Township shall be displayed upon the premises, in plain view of all patrons coming to the premises for service.
B. It shall be a violation for anyone to pierce or tattoo any body part of an individual under 18 years of age without authorization signed by the parent or legal guardian of such person and witnessed by the business operator. The operator shall be responsible for maintaining the original consent form and copies of all consent information for a minimum period of three years or until the patron turns 21 years old, whichever is later. All records are subject to HIPAA regulations.
C. The practitioner must refuse the client if he/she is suspected to be under the influence of alcohol, drugs or other behavior-modifying substance.
D. Each person wishing a body piercing or tattoo must fill out an application which shall include the name, date of birth, address and telephone number of the patron, as well as the body location(s) where the procedure is to be performed, the name of the practitioner and the date of service.
E. Written guidelines shall be established for the care of the body piercing site after piercing and shall be approved by the Board of Health. Each patron shall receive a written copy of the guidelines for care of body piercing or tattoo sites.
F. All practitioners shall have the hepatitis B vaccination series, or be offered the series and decline, in writing. Those who decline shall be tested for hepatitis B surface antigen (HgsAg) on an annual basis. Each practitioner who elects to have the series shall have completed the initial vaccination within 30 days of employment.
G. All practitioners will be required to attend a training program to assure basic knowledge of sterile technique and universal precautions. Verification of completion of the training program must be provided to the Health Officer prior to licensing.
H. All practitioners shall utilize the following procedures in conducting a body piercing or tattooing procedure:
(1) The practitioner shall wash his hands thoroughly with an antibacterial cleanser and water before starting a procedure. The hands of the operator shall be dried with individual, single-use towels.
(2) Single-use sterile gloves shall be worn with any procedure that involves contact with client's blood. The hands of the practitioner shall be thoroughly washed after the procedure has been completed.
(3) No piercing or tattooing shall be done on skin surface that has rash, pimples, boils or infections, or manifests any evidence of unhealthy conditions.
(4) The area to be pierced or tattooed shall first be thoroughly washed with warm water and an antibacterial soap using antiseptic preparation. A single-use sponge shall be used to scrub the area.
(5) Immediately after the piercing or tattooing, the patron shall be advised in writing on the care of the site and any indications of infection or other adverse events. Patrons should be advised to consult a physician at the first sign of infection.
(6) All infections resulting from body piercing or tattooing which become known to the operator or practitioner shall be reported to the Health Officer within 24 hours.
(7) Ear piercing guns may not be used for body piercing.
I. All operators and practitioners shall utilize the following standards of sanitation of instruments:
(1) All clean and ready-to-use needles and instruments, dyes, pigments, carbon stencils and other paraphernalia shall be kept in a closed glass or metal case or storage cabinet while not in use. Such cabinet shall be maintained in a sanitary manner at all times. Individual cabinets containing such paraphernalia shall be available for each individual practitioner.
(2) Only single-service or steam-sterilized needles shall be used.
(3) Nondisposable items used for body piercing or tattooing shall be steam-sterilized before use on any patron. Any other method of sterilization shall be approved by the Health Officer. In addition, the following guidelines shall be followed:
(a) The sterilizer shall be well maintained with tight-fitting gasket and a clean interior.
(b) The manufacturer's operating instructions and sterilization specifications shall be at hand. The operation of the sterilizer shall conform to the manufacturer's specifications with regard to temperature, pressure and time of sterilization cycle.
(c) Proper functioning of sterilization cycles shall be verified by the weekly use of biological indicator, i.e., spore tests. A log book of these weekly test results shall be available, and a test may be required to be done during inspections.
(d) Each item to be sterilized shall be individually wrapped using a chemical indicator or strip to verify steam exposure.
(4) Forceps, accessory equipment and jewelry must be disinfected with a chemical disinfectant registered by the Environmental Protection Agency as being tuberculocidal when used at recommended dilutions. All operators and practitioners shall follow the manufacturer's instructions when utilizing any chemical disinfectant.
(5) All needles should be pre-sterilized, used on one person, in one sitting, and immediately disposed of in a medical sharps container.
(6) All forceps, tubes, etc., are pre-sterilized, stored in sterile bags, and used on one person, in one sitting. After one such use, they must be autoclaved.
(7) All reusable, nonsterilizable implements, such as calipers, should be nonporous and disinfected after each use with bleach solution or a commercial hard-surface disinfectant liquid.
(8) Supplies, including corks, rubber bands, etc., will be pre-sterilized in an autoclave or cleaned with disinfecting liquids, stored in a clean, closed container, and disposed of immediately after a single use.
(9) A new pair of latex single-use gloves (sterile or nonsterile) should be worn for every procedure, and gloves should be changed whenever the slightest chance of cross- contamination might occur.
(10) The room used for body piercing or tattooing, as well as the bathroom and other common areas, should be kept scrupulously clean and disinfected frequently. All surfaces will be nonporous, to allow them to be cleaned with a ten-percent bleach solution that is less than 24 hours old or other disinfecting liquids whenever cross- contamination might occur.
(11) Only jewelry appropriate for the purpose will be used in piercings. Jewelry with nickel or brass plating may not be used.
(12) All jewelry contaminated with only airborne pathogens (not previously worn or contaminated) will be disinfected with a nonhazardous hard-surface disinfectant such as Madacide. All jewelry contaminated or potentially contaminated with blood-borne pathogens (previously worn by another person) should be autoclaved.
J. Disposal of waste. The following guidelines shall be followed in regard to the disposal of waste associated with body piercing or tattooing:
(1) Needles shall not be bent or broken prior to disposal. Operators shall take precautions to prevent injuries from contaminated needles.
(2) Needles shall be disposed of directly into a solid, puncture-resistant container.
(3) Needles, as well as single-use gloves, gauze and other materials saturated with blood, shall be discarded in a plastic bag and placed into a cardboard box prior to off-site disposal. A written agreement for disposal of such waste shall be with an authorized service for disposal of medical waste.
K. Health of practitioner. No practitioner with any disease in a communicable form or suspected of having such disease shall perform a body piercing or tattooing procedure unless the practitioner has taken definitive prophylactic steps to ensure prevention of communicability and protection of the patron. Such diseases may include but shall not be limited to the common cold, influenza, tuberculosis, HIV virus, scabies, impetigo, syphilis, chicken pox, measles (rubeola), German measles (rubella), mumps, whooping cough, hepatitis, infection on hands or arms, sore throat or jaundice of the skin or sclera. The Health Officer may require a practitioner to provide a certificate signed by a state licensed health practitioner stating that a practitioner is free from communicable diseases before a practitioner may be present at a procedure.