Sanitation, Sterilization, Safety and Disease Prevention for Electrology Offices and Schools

(1) Sanitation and Safety. All electrolysis offices, schools and treatment rooms must comply with the following: (a) The office, school or treatment room shall be adequately lighted, well ventilated, clean, orderly and sanitary. (b) All electrolysis equipment and tools shall be kept in good repair and shall be stored within the electrolysis office or school. (c) All medicated creams, lotions and sterilizing solutions shall be labeled as to their contents. (d) A closed cabinet or drawer shall be provided for clean towels and linens and separate covered containers for soiled disposable and/or reusable materials. (e) No animals except service animals authorized by law to be in places of public accommodation shall be permitted in any electrolysis office, treatment room or waiting room. (2) Equipment Sterilization. (a) Prior to equipment sterilization, the surfaces of all treatment tables, epilators and other instruments which may come in direct contact with a patient shall be wiped clean of organic material through the use of either an ultrasonic cleaning device or any method recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). (b) All devices and instruments which may come in direct contact with a patient shall be sterilized by: 1. Use of an autoclave or dry heat sterilizer, to be set and operated according to the standard cycle, as set forth in the manufacturer's operating instructions; or 2. Use of any other method or means of sterilization which has been approved by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and which meets all applicable requirements of state and federal laws and regulations including, but not limited to, all applicable regulations of the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. (c) Pre-sterilized packaged disposable needles are required for electrolysis. (d) All electrologists shall use a biological monitoring test kit at least quarterly to insure tools and equipment are disinfected effectively. (3) Treatment Procedures. (a) Every electrologist, instructor or student shall wash his or her hands with liquid soap immediately prior to the treatment of any patient, and shall rewash his or her hands with the liquid soap if treatment of that patient is interrupted and contact is made with any contaminated surface or object. (b) An electrologist, instructor or student shall follow universal precautions as defined by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and shall comply with all applicable requirements of state and/or federal laws and regulations including, but not limited to, the regulations of the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, while treating any patient. (c) Clean disposable paper products are to be used under the head and the area being treated for each patient (d) The skin areas of the patient which are to be treated shall be cleaned with skin cleansing products and an antiseptic solution prior to treatment. (e) Areas of the body which shall not be treated by electrolysis are: 1. Mucous membranes; 2. External auditory canal of the ear; 3. Areolae and nipples of the breasts; 4. Breasts of nursing women; 5. Tissues of the nostrils; and 6. Eyelids. 7. Areas within the boundaries of the orbital rim of the eye and any part of the eyebrow may not be treated using laser or intense pulsed light technology. (f) Electrologists shall not treat conditions where electrology procedures are contraindicated by current accepted standards of practice. (g) An electrologist may treat patients with certain conditions if he or she first obtains written authorization to do so from the patient's physician. Such conditions include: 1. Diabetes mellitus; 2. Hair in moles; 3. Medical conditions for which the patient wears any external or implanted medical object or device; 4. Medical conditions that are treated with drugs having anti coagulant effects; and 5. Medical conditions treated with drugs such as, but not limited to, Isotretinoins and drugs that may create photosensitivity. (h) Prior to initiating any treatment, an electrologist, instructor or student must provide the patient with an explanation of the nature of the treatment or procedure to be performed, the potential benefits and risks of undergoing said treatment, the nature of any after treatment care to be provided, the cost of said treatment, and any other information reasonably necessary to allow the patient to make a decision intelligently about whether or not to undergo said treatment. Following such explanation, the electrologist, instructor or student shall obtain, and document in writing, the consent of the patient before initiating any treatment. (i) Narcotics, alcohol, marijuana and tobacco are prohibited in any electrolysis office, school or other electrolysis facility. (j) Electrologists, instructors and students shall wear a professional lab jacket. Professional scrubs are permitted. (k) An electrologist shall maintain a complete patient record and case history on each patient, which shall be in writing or capable of being reproduced in written form, and shall, at a minimum, contain the data prescribed by the Board.