CHRIS NEAL/THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL
A nail salon may seem like it has little potential for danger, but if not managed properly, it can spread serious infections or even hide illegal activity, according to the Kansas Board of Cosmetology.
Fortunately for the people of Shawnee County, most local salons passed their inspections with little apparent trouble in 2013.
The Topeka Capital-Journal analyzed health inspection reports for Shawnee County's hair, nail, tanning and body art salons. A database of inspection data is available at CJOnline.com.
Chiquita Coggs, executive director of the Kansas Board of Cosmetology, said salons with three or fewer violations are considered to have passed, and all but 14 salons in Shawnee County met that threshold.
Stylin' Hair Studio, 2107 S.W. Belle, is one of 34 salons in Shawnee County that had no violations noted on their annual inspections from 2011 to 2013. About 100 salons in Shawnee County had no violations in 2013. Co-owners Jill Hunt, Michele Hillrichs and Vicki Anderson said consistently meeting state standards requires organization, with equipment like brushes and files stored in a certain way and all bottles labeled. The fourth co-owner, Darcie Schierkolk, wasn't present when they spoke with reporters.
Much of what they need to do is basic, such as wiping down sinks between clients and cleaning up hair, Hillrichs said. They also need to disinfect their nail files and clippers after each use to avoid spreading fungus, Hunt said.
Anderson said customers, as well as inspectors, like to see that a salon is clean, even though they don't see the sanitation measures in the back room.
'It's like if you have company to your house. Wouldn't you want it clean?' she said.
Sonia Handy, owner of An Angel's Touch Day Spa, also didn't have any violations in the three years analyzed, and she said she hasn't had any for the 13 years she has been in business. She said she uses the standard disinfectant, but also has a process for metal items like electrolysis tweezers that includes washing them and putting them in an ultrasonic cleaner that uses inaudible vibrations to shake loose any debris that might have gotten caught in difficult-to-clean nooks.
Handy then rinses and dries them again before putting them in a dry sterilizer, which uses heat to kill viruses and bacteria that might be hindered, but not killed, by disinfectants. Dry sterilizers are commonly used to clean surgical instruments but aren't often a part of the beauty industry.
'I've always gone up and above what state board requires because I felt it was necessary,' she said.
It takes about 80 minutes to dry sterilize instruments, Handy said, but customers feel more secure knowing everything has been thoroughly cleaned.
'They know that they're coming into a safe environment,' she said.
By law, each salon in the state must be inspected every two years, Coggs said, but the board's inspectors attempt to get to each annually. That can be difficult because the department has four full-time and one part-time inspector to check up on about 3,000 facilities statewide, she said. Inspectors look for problems with disinfecting and infection control, proper licensing and sanitation measures like washing hands and keeping furniture clean.
'There is no violation that is considered a minor violation,' she said.
Some items like hair brushes may not be obvious methods of spreading germs, but they need to be disinfected in case a customer is carrying methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Coggs said. About 2 percent of the population carries MRSA, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and most people either develop a small wound that resembles a spider bite or don't show any signs. For some people, however, the infection can be serious, and it can be difficult to treat because the bacteria have developed resistance to some common antibiotics.
'If someone has MRSA and it's not very visible, and they have an open lesion on their head or neck and you use combs or brushes, it can be spread,' she said.
Pedicure bowls also need to be disinfected regularly with hospital-grade chemicals to prevent the spread of bacterial and fungal infections, Coggs said. That can be one of the most difficult areas when it comes to ensuring compliance because some facilities are looking to save money by reducing cleaning costs, she said.
'We have people who cut corners and they don't see the value of daily disinfectant,' she said. 'If there's evidence they're not doing that, that's pretty egregious.'
If a facility has more than three violations related to infection control, then it has to undergo monthly inspections for at least six months, and longer in some cases, she said. The inspectors also investigate complaints about cleanliness and unlicensed practitioners.
'We take advantage of our inspection process to educate people,' she said.
If a facility has three annual inspections with infection control violations, they get a 'remedial action' letter and are required to send back a notarized improvement plan, Coggs said. If they still don't comply after submitting an improvement plan, the board can levy fines, she said.
'Getting a fine means you've not been in compliance for four years,' she said. 'We wish there were more teeth in (the law), but there aren't.'
In some cases, when a facility has an unusually high number of violations, inspectors return in 60 days, Coggs said. If it hasn't shown improvement, the matter could go before an administrative law judge to determine if the owner should lose his or her license, she said.
'If you have a lot of violations it can happen quickly,' she said.
Kansas, like many states, has trouble with unlicensed practitioners in the hair and nail industry, Coggs said. In some cases, that allows salon owners to use workers who are victims of human trafficking and aren't free to leave their jobs while they pay off their 'debts' to the traffickers. Sometimes, the exploitation comes to light only when inspectors discover a worker doesn't have the relevant licenses, she said.
'Incredibly, we do have a lot of unlicensed practice,' Coggs said.
All of the disciplinary actions recorded against Shawnee County facilities in 2013 were for licensing violations. Sun Resorts Tanning, Estilo Salon, Elite Illusions and Bank Barbers & Stylist each were fined $250 in 2013 for operating with an expired establishment license. Brow Art 23 was fined $500 for operating without a license, and three individuals associated with the studio were each fined $250. Supreme Elegance was fined $250 for employing an unlicensed practitioner. Two individuals also were fined $250 for having expired practitioner licenses, but records didn't indicate where they worked.
Records of disciplinary actions are available online, but violation reports aren't yet available electronically, Coggs said. The board can't make a recommendation on where to get your hair cut, she said, but it can answer questions if people want more information about how a salon performed in its inspections.
One of the biggest issues the cosmetology board and inspectors face is that the public often doesn't understand the health regulations surrounding hair, nails, tanning and body art, Coggs said. Salons are required to post their inspection reports, but what they mean often isn't clear to the average person, she said. A process is underway to come up with a better way to explain the results.
'Our role is to protect the consuming public, and they're the only ones we don't talk to,' she said.
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