When Alpena residents choose a tattoo or piercing facility, the most important safety step may happen before the needle ever touches skin. Stella Johnson, the owner of the recently opened Pin Cushion Body Art on U.S.-23 South, is emphasizing sterilization, equipment handling and licensing as more tattoo shops open across Northeast Michigan.
Johnson said her priority at the new Alpena body art facility is making clients feel safe and comfortable. Tattoos and piercings create open wounds, she said, meaning the tools and procedures used during the service must be treated with the same seriousness as other situations involving broken skin.
“Sterilization is the absolute most important thing,” Johnson said. “It's not something that the public thinks about, which they shouldn't have to. When you go to a hospital, you don't think 'Oh, I hope everything's clean.' Everything should be clean.”
Why sterilization matters for tattoos and piercings
Johnson warned that people without professional training can buy tattoo machines online and attempt to tattoo friends, relatives or paying customers from their homes. Without the proper equipment and sterilization procedures, she said, that practice can create a risk of spreading serious bloodborne pathogens.
“People don't realize if you are tattooing somebody with Hepatitis B, even as bad HIV, like these serious bloodborne pathogens, and you don't have the proper equipment to sterilize … you can pass it on to somebody else.”
At Pin Cushion Body Art, Johnson said equipment is cleaned between uses, including when clients who are related are scheduled one after another. She also said needles are not shared.
“We're not sharing needles,” Johnson said. “It's not going to happen.”
For piercings, Johnson advises customers to watch for a basic but important step: Tools should be taken from sterilization pouches in front of the client. If a metal tool does not come out of a sterilization pouch, she said customers should leave rather than proceed with the service.
“I tell a lot of my clients … if you ever get a piercing and there's something metal and does not come out of one of these, leave,” she said. “Because you just don't know.”
The multistep process at Pin Cushion Body Art
Johnson described sterilization as a process designed to remove visible debris and eliminate bloodborne pathogens and other contaminants. She begins by scrubbing instruments with Dial Gold antibacterial soap and toothbrushes.
The tools then go into a digital ultrasonic cleaner after soaking for 10 minutes in a hospital-grade cleaner. Johnson said the ultrasonic machine uses sound waves to break away tiny pieces of debris that cannot be seen. After that cleaning stage, the tools are placed on a drying rack to air-dry, which she said helps prevent rust.
The final step is an autoclave. The machine uses pressurized steam to kill bacteria, viruses, fungi and spores on the equipment. Johnson said Michigan body art facilities are required to have a Class B autoclave, the type of equipment used in dental offices. Class S autoclaves are used in hospital and surgical settings.
Customers can also look at the sterilization pouch. Johnson said it has a blue arrow that turns black when the package reaches the appropriate temperature for killing bloodborne pathogens and bacteria.
What Alpena-area customers should check
Michigan local health departments operate under the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and inspect body art facilities to confirm that required equipment, including a functioning autoclave, is available. Johnson said Pin Cushion Body Art and its sterilization equipment were inspected by District Health Department No. 4.
Chelsea Engle, DHD4's medical director, said the department routinely inspects tattoo and piercing facilities. She said state law requires those businesses to use appropriate equipment and safe practices to protect the public.
“The body art facility licensing law was enacted to reduce the risk of bloodborne disease transmission like Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV.”
Engle said safe practices are particularly important for people receiving tattoos or piercings and encouraged customers to verify that a facility is licensed and inspected.
“Check out the list of licensed body art facilities to make sure you are going to a place that has been inspected for safety.”
People planning to get a tattoo or piercing can check Michigan's licensed body art facility information through the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services website at michigan.gov/mdhhs/doing-business/licensing/body-art. The state information can help customers confirm that the facility they are considering has been licensed and inspected.