Photo Credit: Stock Photo
Alberta Health Services (AHS) are advising people who were tattooed at a Calgary tattoo shop to get tested after the shop was shut of unsanitary conditions.
Pharaohs Tattooing, located at 3519 Centre Street N.W. in Calgary was ordered to close on October 30th, 2014 for violating health regulations in the province.
“To prevent the spread of infection from one person to another, equipment used in tattooing must be cleaned, disinfected and sterilized according to health standards,” said Dr. Judy MacDonald, Medical Officer of Health with the Calgary Zone of AHS. “This particular home-based tattoo operation did not have these proper sterilization or sanitation processes in place, meaning individuals who received tattoos through this operation may have been exposed to viruses, including Hepatitis B and C, and HIV.”
Tattooing equipment must be cleaned, disinfected and sterilized according to health standards, and according to AHS that was not happening.
“It is the responsibility of all tattoo facility operators to ensure all regulations are met and operations are compliant. This applies not only before opening a tattoo operation, but also while operating, always. Our health inspectors support these businesses to operate safely: we are here as a resource,” said Dr. MacDonald.
The tattoo shop will not be able to reopen until the operator addresses all the concerns and violations identified by AHS. Anyone who received tattoos at the Pharaohs Tattooing operation should call Health Link Alberta at 1-866-408-5465 (LINK) to arrange for simple, confidential testing for these viruses. The results of testing will be used to determine whether an individual is infected.
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