Even after decades of required licensing, people are still surprised when I tell them that tattooers MUST be licensed to legally tattoo in Hawaii.    Our regulations have been in place for a very long time and are in place for a reason.  But even if a person passes their test does it truly qualify them to tattoo?

Tattooing... be it body art or cosmetics... is a body invasive procedure that belongs in the hands of people who have been trained in ALL aspects of the profession... not those who have passed a 50 question exam.

Like all professions those who are seeking a practitioner need to do a little homework. Ask questions, expect solid answers. Ask for portfolios. Challenge the pictures (yes people falsify their portfolio with plagiarized work) and ask more questions. How long have they been doing this craft? How did they learn? Do they have any continuing education certifications?   When was the last bloodborne pathogen course they took?  and was it only a quick 15 minute internet 'course' or a tattoo specific course such as APT's?

It is vitally important that you choose a person who has been educated beyond buying equipment and practicing on their buddies.  Recently it was my honor to work with a number of tattooers updating their BBPathogen training and a few working to pass their exam.  Kudos to those tattooers who know the importance of education!

What are the dangers from the untrained tattooer?

To pass bacteria or a virus takes a few steps. First a bad germ bug must be present. Then there is the portal of exit... be it a sneeze, body contact, surface contact, or animal/insect contact. There must be a portal of entry... open wound, mucous tissue (nose, eyes, mouth) or other entry (mosquito bite). Badda Bing! Houston we have a problem... transfer one germ from person A to person B complete. Proceed with disease.  Tattooers who have had proper training and education understand this process and take the necessary steps to prevent disease transmission.

In untrained hands buying equipment and 'blastin' on the neighbor is like playing Russian Roulette with 5 bullets in the gun.  Let's look at those bullets:

Scary bunch. There are more than eight strains of hepatitis today. A, B, and C are the most prevalent and the most concerning. Hep A is transmitted by unsanitary conditions involving fecal matter... oh yuck! That can be in foods and or water (don’t swim in the brown stuff!) WASH YOUR HANDS prior to eating or preparing food!! A cute little tool is to sing either ‘Row Your Boat’ or ‘Happy Birthday’ while you wash your hands (silently, ok?) so you know you are devoting proper time to the task Wash your food products prior to consumption.

Hep A symptoms resemble food poisoning... fever, diarrhea, vomiting. Not all cases manifest in the same manner. There is a vaccine available for Hep A and is highly advisable if one is traveling in foreign lands where sanitation is in question. I like to eat in  those little hole in the wall greasy spoons so my husband and I have both been vaccinated for Hep A. No big deal.

Ok, now we enter really scary territory. Hep B is rapidly spreading to epidemic proportions via blood. Now that blood can be profuse... say an accident. Or it can be minute such as sexual contact, IV drug use, contaminated surfaces or even oral contact if one’s gums bleed. Why do you think your dentist approaches you looking like an astronaut? Gloves, face shield, glasses... full protection from any body fluids!

Hep B can be transmitted via the smallest amount of blood containing mucous or dried blood. Surfaces where body fluid contact has been made MUST be disinfected by proper disinfectant products. Read the labels of products today and you can find Hep B virus specifically listed! It’s a very real problem in our world folks and it isn’t just in your doctor/dentist/manicurist/tattooer’s office that you can find this little buggah.

Hep B can live dormant in the body for over 20 years. It may manifest as liver problems such as cirrhosis or liver cancer or it may not show up at all. Have you noticed that all children attending school are now required to receive the Hep B vacs? By OSHA standards ALL people with any contact with body fluids on the job site must be offered the vaccination by their employers. They have the right of refusal (must be documented) but they must have the option of yea or nea. These requirements are a reflection of the seriousness of this disease and it’s impact on our society.

21 years ago my mother in law died of cirrhosis of the liver from Hep B. She never knew she had it. How did she get it? Was it the cornea transplant from 10 years prior to her death? Was it from non-tested blood in a transfusion? Who knows. The fact remains she died a very uncomfortable death that she didn’t deserve. We know more today than we did then... but we still have to use that knowledge!

Now think about that and those people who are trying to learn body art by practicing on their buddies. Do they have the skills or the education to protect not only themselves but the client in front of them??  OR their keiki who eat at the same table they are 'blastin' tats' on?? 

Hepatitis can live for up to SIX days on a dried surface.  Absorb that for a moment.  One week.  dried. 

HEP C 

Ok, now we are talking about the scariest of them all. Hep C is an insidious killer. According to the Alliance of Professional Tattooists it is the most common bloodborne pathogen in the US today. The most common. Dang. Once again, IV drug use, intranasal drug use, and other body fluid contacts have given this killer it’s place in our world.

There is NO vaccine for Hep C. You may have a friend or family member who is on a liver donor list as a result of this virus. Great strides have been made with interferon and other treatments but it remains a terrifying reality.  

HAWAII HAS THE HIGHEST RATE PER CAPITA OF HEP B/C IN THE NATION AND THE HIGHEST RATE OF LIVER CANCER/TRANSPLANTS PER CAPITA DUE TO HEP INFECITONS.   Pacific Islanders are particularly susceptible to the HB and HB viruses.  Double ouch.

As if the hepatitis family isn’t scary enough, huh? Yep, here comes the scourge of the century. While it takes very little blood to transmit Hep B or C, HIV is a bit tougher to transmit. Once again, sexual contact, IV drug use, mucous portals (eyes, mouth, nose...remember your astronaut dentist?) are means of transmission. HIV is said to be difficult to transmit via surfaces such as counters, handles, etc. Not impossible, but much harder than the hep family.

What does this mean to body art? Proper training, sterilization using an autoclave, following Standard Precautions, and continuing education on the evolution and developments of these viruses is a MUST. I repeat: