COVID-19

How to prepare for an appointment

• The client should provide assurance that they, and no-one in their household has had COVID-19 symptoms in the past 7 days.
• The client is asked to take their temperature 2 hours before the appointment. If the clients show signs of fever they are advised to seek medical attention and cancel or rescehdule their appointment.
• If the client has come into contact with anyone displaying COVID-19 symptoms, they should cancel or rescehdule their appointment.
• If the client suffers from allergies, they should take antihistamine 4 hours before the appointment. If the client is coughing/sneezing and the antihistamine cannot control, the client should cancel or reschedule their appointment.
• Prior to the appointment, the client is advised to thoroughly clean surfaces that the service provider is likely to touch, prior to the service providers arrival.
• The client should remove all jewelry before the start of their appointment and put it in a safe place.
• The client should provide all linen and towels that will be required for the treatment.

During the appointment

• Both client and service provider should wash their hands thoroughly when the service provider arrives.
• All other members of the household should keep at least 2 metres distance from the service provider, but preferrably be in another room for the duration of the visit.
• Should either client or service provider at any point feel that the appointment cannot be conducted in a safe manner, they have the right to stop the appointment.
• The client should wear a face-mask or covering throughout the appointment, removing only when the face requires to be handled.
• After use, face masks should be either disposed of or washed following the manufacturers instructions.
• Throughout the appointment, keep conversation to a minimum, and when required maintain a 2 metre distance from the other party.
• Where possible, keep windows open to allow for air movement and good ventilation.

After the appointment

• The service provider will place any waste into a rubbish bag, tie it off, and the client will dispose of it, ideally in an external rubbish bin.
• When the therapist leaves and before meeting any other mambers of the household, the client should wash their hands thoroughly with soup and hot water for a minimum of 20 seconds. After a tanning treatment, you should avoid touching any surfaces until the tan has developed and then wash your hands thoroughly.
• We recommend that the client wash any towels/linen used during the appointment immediately after the service provider has left, ideally on a 60° wash.
• The client should clean any surfaces that the service provider may have touched before other members of the household re-enter that area of the property.

Should I go back to work?

If you’re considered to be clinically vulnerable or clinically extremely vulnerable, or you live, or have regular contact with someone who is; we highly recommend that you DO NOT return to work in any capacity until government guidelines state that it is safe for you to do so.

If you, anyone you are living with, or anyone you have come in contact with are experiencing any symptoms of respiratory illness (a raised temperature, a new, persistent cough or cold, or loss of, or change in sense of taste or smell, regardless of whether you think it’s COVID-19) please follow government guidelines regarding self-isolation and do not book an appointment of any kind until it is safe for you to do so.

Preparing for an appointment

• Take your temperature 2 hours before the appointment. If you show signs of fever, you should seek medical attention and cancel or rescehdule the appointment.
• If you come into contact with anyone displaying COVID-19 symptoms, or someone in your household has displayed these symptoms, you should cancel or rescehdule the appointment.
• If you suffer from allergies, you should take antihistamine 4 hours before the appointment. If you are coughing/sneezing to an extent that the antihistamine cannot control, you should cancel or reschedule the appointment.
• Wear short-sleeves to ensure that you can thoroughly wash and sanitise your upper arms when washing your hands.
• As we work in close proximity with our clients, usually for an extended period of time (an extended period of time refers to the majority of the working day, irrespective of the number of clients served during the day), you must wear a clear visor for each appointment that covers the face and provides a barrier between you and the client from respiratory droplets caused by sneezing, coughing or speaking.
• Visors must fit well and be worn properly. It should cover the forehead, extend below your chin, and wrap around the side of your face.
• Both disposable and re-usable visors are available. A re-usable visor must be cleaned and sanitised regularly using normal cleaning products. There is no requirement for your client to wear any additional protection such as a mask or face covering, when you are wearing a visor.

Arriving for the appointment

• Upon arrival, confirm that no-one in the household has had COVID-19 symptoms for the past 7 days.
• Remove shoes before entering the clients property, or use disposible shoe covers.
• Wash hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds with soap and hot water and use your own towel to dry them. Use your own soap or hand sanitiser (minimum 60% alcohol)

During the appointment

• Should either client or service provider at any point feel that the appointment cannot be conducted in a safe manner, they have the right to stop the appointment.
• Disinfect your equipment thoroughly in front of the client. Use sealed packaged equipment where possible.
• Wear disposable gloves at all times and dispose of them prior to your departure.
• Where possible use a visor or googles to sheild your eyes.
• Use only towels and linen provided for you by the client.
• Avoid touching your own or clients face.
• Do not accept any food or beverages from the client. You should bring your own bottle of water to the appointment.
• Throughout the appointment, keep conversation to a minimum, and when required maintain a 2 metre distance from the other party.
• Pin or tie hair back away from your face to minimise the need to touch your face.
• Ensure that your nails are kept short.

After the appointment

• You should carry a supply of displosable bin bags with you at all times. Pleace any rubbish from the appointment into a bin bag at the end of the appointment and seal it carefully. Ask the client to dispose of the bag for you, do not touch the clients rubbish bin yourself.
• Prior to leaving the clients property you should wash your hands thoroughly using your own soap and hot water or hand sanitizer with over 60% alcohol. Use your own towel to dry your hands.
• Wearing gloves, thoroughly disinfect any equipment used according to the manufacturers guidelines. Use packaged equipment where possible.
• If you are travelling by car you should also disinfect your vechicle between appointments, particulary areas that you are regularly touching.
• Wash your clothes as often as possible on a 60° wash to minimise the risk of your clothes becoming contaminated.
• Any PPE used during the appointment should be disposed of in accordance with HSE guidelines, ensuring that you wash your hands before and after handling the PPE.

Eye Treatments (currently not available in Scotland)

• Use couch roll or the clients towels on your massage table.
• To give you maximum protection whilst being close to the clients face, it is recommeded that you use N95 face masks and visor/googles.

Facials (currently not available in Scotland)

• Use couch roll or the clients towels on your massage table.
• Use disposable facial mitts and sponges.
• Put your facial products needed for the treatment into individual pots for each appointment, and disinfect these thoroughly between appointments.
• To give you maximum protection whilst being close to the clients face, it is recommeded that you use N95 face masks and visor/googles.
• Reduce the need to touch the clients face whenever you can. If possible use tools to carry out facial massage, rather than your hands.

Hair

• If blow drying, ensure that windows are open to ventilate the room.
• Disinfect all your equipment between appointments according to the manufacturers guidelines.
• Minimise the amount of equipment that is laid out during the appointment.

Make-up (currently not available in Scotland)

• If possible, use the clients own make-up brushes, disinfecting them in front of the client.
• If using your own brushes, ensure that they are washed and disinfected between appointments.
• Use disposable mascara wands.
• If using sponges, please use the disposable kind.
• Avoid touching your clients face as much as possible. You should blend using brushes rather than your fingers if you can.
• Minimise the amount of equipment that is laid out during the appointment.

Massage

• Use couch roll or the clients towels on your massage table.
• As the use of gloves will prevent a high quality treatment, you should be extremely thorough whilst washing your hands and arms in soap and hot water for a minimum of 20 seconds. You should do this upon arrival, just before you start the treatment and just before leaving the property.
• It is recommended that you double check the clients temperature just before commencing with the treatment.

Nails

• Equipment must be sterilised and disinfected after each use in line with the manufacturers guidelines.
• Where possible, use disposable single-use packaged equipment and ensure that they are disposed of safely after the treatment.
• Clean tools should be stored in a sealed, sterile container and only be removed when they are required rather than laying them out for the duration of the treatment.
• Used nail polish brushes should be thoroughly disinfected after every appointment.
• Do not touch the clients hands or feet until they have been thoroughly soaked.
• Minimise the amount of equipment that is laid out during the appointment.

Tanning

• Thoroughly clean your spray-gun (in line with the manufacturers guidelines) after every appointment.
• Do not breathe, cough or sneeze into your solutions when filling your gun.
• Thoroughly disinfect your tent (in line with the manufacturers guidelines) after every appointment.
• Ask the client to apply the barrier cream themselves.

Waxing

• Use couch roll or the clients towels on your massage table.
• Empty and disinfect your wax pot after every appointment.
• Only use disposal spatulas once during an appointment. Do not put a spatula that has been in contact with the client back into the waxing pot.
• At the end of the treatment, place all waste into your own sealed bin bag and ask the client to dispose of it for you.