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Piercing customers advised to test for viruses

Piercing customers advised to test for viruses

 

 

Alberta Health Services are advising customers from Fernie and Sparwood who received piercings from a shop in Coleman, AB, to be tested for viruses such as Hepatitis B and C, and HIV.

Following the closure of the unapproved Victor Proctor piercing operation, located within the Tommy Gun Tattoo shop in the town of Coleman in the Crowsnest Pass, Alberta Health Services (AHS) released an advisory that all individuals who received piercings from this operator be tested for viruses that can be spread through unsanitary piercing procedures.

AHS contacted Interior Health when they discovered the shop had received customers from the Elk Valley.

They specified that the advisory does not apply to tattoo services provided by Tommy Gun Tattoos. Tommy Gun Tattoos has been inspected and approved to provide tattoo services. This advisory applies strictly to the unapproved independently run Victor Proctor piercing operation, co-located within the Tommy Gun parlour.

“The Victor Proctor piercing operation did not have proper sterilization processes in place, meaning individuals who received piercings at this operation may have been exposed to viruses such as Hepatitis B and C, and HIV,” says Dr. Vivien Suttorp, Medical Officer of Health, AHS South Zone.

“To prevent the spread of infection from one person to another, equipment used in piercing and other procedures where the skin is broken, must be cleaned, disinfected, and sterilized according to health standards, or be a single-use item.”

Simple blood tests can determine whether an individual has been infected. Anyone who received piercings from the Victor Proctor piercing operation, located within Tommy Gun Tattoo shop, should contact Interior Health.

Interior Health sites in the area are aware of this issue and staff are prepared to work with anyone who has concerns or requires testing.

AHS public health officials became aware of the Victor Proctor piercing operation during a routine AHS inspection of the Tommy Gun Tattoo shop.