Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Prevention & Control Policy
For
Kallea Beauty & Holistic Therapies by Harriet
All of us have been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in many ways.
I have missed being able to offer you the treatments that I know you love, and I am very much looking forward to seeing you again as soon as possible even though it may not be quite the same as it was before.
Therefore I ask you please to read the following document through to the end for an insight on how we move forward with seeing one another at your appointments.
My priority is to keep you as safe as possible and prior to re-opening my business and home-based salon I have implemented a number of changes which I would like to make you aware of.
During the time the salon has been shut, I have completed a number of courses, one being the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Prevention and Control course which is accredited by the Guild of Professional Beauty Therapists Ltd, the UK trade body for our industry.
I have been a fully insured member of the Guild of Professional Beauty Therapists since I started my business 7 years ago and continue to renew my membership and insurance annually. I have since made a few changes in the way that I will operate that you will notice when you next visit.
Booking Appointments
If I feel ill or have symptoms of COVID-19, I will self-isolate immediately and will not be carrying out any scheduled appointments. This may mean that I have to cancel your appointment at short notice. I appreciate that this may be inconvenient but it is done entirely for your own safety. If your appointment is cancelled you will be able to re-book again or ask for a full refund / voucher / credit if you have prepaid.
If you or any of the people you live with feel ill or display any symptoms of COVID-19 – please advise me as soon as possible and DO NOT COME TO MY HOME FOR YOUR APPOINTMENT. I have amended my booking terms and conditions and you will not be charged for any appointments which you miss due to illness.
For every visit at Kallea, you will receive a Covid-19 health check screening form via email 24 hours before your appointment. This is a requirement by the government and these forms are to be completed before your visit otherwise your treatment cannot go ahead.
Visiting my Home-Based Salon
For your safety and to maintain social distancing, I ask that you attend your appointments as close to the appointment time as possible. Please do not turn up early for appointments as this may mean that you come into contact with other clients who are just leaving. This very rarely happened before COVID-19 due to the way I space my appointments, but this is just an added precaution. I have always asked of you that if you do arrive early for your appointment, please always wait in your car and feel free to text me to let me know you have arrived. If I am available I will obviously welcome you in early if I can. I ask this to avoid too many people coming into contact with one another but also to allow me enough time to thoroughly clean all areas, change personal protection equipment (PPE) and set up for your treatment.
To help with hygiene and avoid cross contamination and infection I have a number of things to ask of you when visiting me (please do not take offence; this is for both yours and my safety):
- Please come alone, only one person is permitted at one time, this includes no children.
- Please avoid touching anything unnecessary, eg. Nail polish colours, skincare items on display etc.
- Please leave any non essential items at home or in your car, do not bring them into my home, for example; coats, scarves, handbags, laptop bags, change of outfits, make up bags, face washing items, etc.
- Please only bring your mobile phone, diary and card/cash in to your appointment.
- Please remove and leave all jewellery at home prior to your treatment where possible.
- Please remove your shoes upon entering my home and leave them inside the front door.
- Toilet facilities will obviously still be available in emergencies, but please only use them if really necessary. This facility will need to be cleaned thoroughly after every client use.
- I will not be offering drinks, so if you wish to bring your own please do.
Hygiene is a huge part of the industry I work in. We study the importance and appropriate procedures to ensure we practise our skills and carry out our work safely and to an acceptable standard. Therefore, many of my cleaning procedures will remain the same as they were before Covid-19 as these are still sufficient practise. I will continue to clean all working surfaces and areas, tools and equipment and clean the treatment bed and change towels between each client as standard.
I have, however, increased the frequency of cleaning in my therapy room, hallway and toilet area to include making sure that common surfaces, floors, toilets, door handles, light switches etc. are wiped clean using disinfectant products between each client.
All tools and equipment will be cleaned, disinfected and dried using an NHS approved brand of cleaning products called Navy Hygiene. You may have already seen the Navy brand around my treatment room as I have been using them since 2019. I will also be using appropriate disinfectant products following manufacturer guidelines to clean other surfaces.
Wherever possible I will utilise single use items during a treatment that will be disposed of safely after use. This is incredibly important part of maintaining your protection in order to eliminate and avoid the risk of cross infection.
You will have access to soap and hot water to wash your hands as soon as you enter my home. Please do not be offended when I ask you go straight to the cloak room and wash your hands on arrival. There will also be hand sanitiser available for you to use as well.
Please don’t be surprised or upset if I am wearing PPE during your visit and during your treatment. This may include disposable gloves / facemasks / face shield / aprons where appropriate. I will be monitoring and following the recommended guidelines required of me regarding PPE.
I will understand and not be offended if you wish to wear a facemask. In fact it is highly advised that you do so, as we will be in close proximity to one another. You can obviously continue wearing your PPE during your treatment where it is appropriate.
I can confirm that the laundering of salon towels is a priority. I can assure you that all salon laundry is washed at 60 degrees Celsius, which has always been the recommended temperature for my industry and I will maintain this.
My Treatments
Current government guidelines state that I still cannot perform treatments on the face.
The treatments I cannot perform are:
- Facial waxing
- Eyebrow and eyelash treatments
- Facials
- Facial massage
The treatments I can carry out include:
- Nail treatments – manicure, pedicure, gel nails
- Reflexology
- Massage – head massage is safe to carry out
- Body waxing
- Hopi Ear Candle
- Body treatments
During your Treatment
I understand the importance of hand hygiene and will ensure that I wash my hands in according with NHS recommendations before the start of your treatment, which is standard practise.
Due to some of the new safety procedures there may be a slight change in the set up and comfort of some treatments. Due to hygiene risk and cross contamination and infection some of my more relaxing treatments may have to forgo some of their luxury, comfort elements and the treatment bed may seem a little sparse. I do hope you will understand why there will be these possible changes for the time being, and I really hope they will only be for the short term.
I will do everything I possibly can to try to make your treatment as safe, comfortable and enjoyable as possible. If you have any concerns about your treatments please let me know.
After the Treatment
In order to avoid the handling of cash and card payments, I would prefer if you could pay for your treatment by bank transfer in advance or when you are with me. However, cash and card are still available payment options if bank transfer is not an option you for.
All of these procedures have been implemented for your safety and mine. We will continue to take advice from the Government and the NHS regarding safe practice and will amend them as necessary. Please bear with me during this time, especially if I have to make last minute changes to appointments, treatments or policies, I am being governed by the Government and my insurance company, and I will be following their advice. For me this is the most responsible way to deal with the pandemic with regards to you and yours families, as well as mine and my business.
Thanks you for your understanding.
Harriet Tipping
Kallea Beauty & Holistic Therapies by Harriet
10th July 2020