Clean and Safe: Essential Infection Control Tips for Beauty Pros

[00:00:00] Mario: Anyone who's had a nail fungus, Didn't get that from sitting at home watching Netflix. 

[00:00:06] Mario: They did that because they went to a spa that didn't have proper cleaning practices after a pedicure 

[00:00:12] Darine: Welcome to this week's episode of Beauty Babble. Today, we're talking about how to keep you and your clients safe with a clean and germ free environment. We're joined by a special guest, Mario Zyskowski. He's an infection control specialist with C Bon. Mario, welcome to the podcast. Thanks so much for joining us today. 

[00:00:34] Mario: Thank you.  

[00:00:35] Suzanne: So, with Seabon, as we had mentioned, we may not know that name very well, but folks might know Pre Emp as the product better, so could you tell us a little bit about how those two companies are together, if that's a fair question?  

[00:00:52] Mario: So, I'm here to talk to you about infection control and how to keep your salon and spa safe and germ [00:01:00] free, and one of the products that I represent or, quite familiar with is called preempt in Canada in the United States. 

[00:01:07] Mario: It's called prevention. There's different bodies that look after infection control and those standards. It's the EPA in the States. It's health Canada. Up here. So preempt is the disinfectant that is distributed by Seabon and there are over 2000 distributors in Canada. So they're the master distributor that in turn distributes to distributors from coast to coast. 

[00:01:32] Mario: And this particular product preempt is used specifically in salons, spas and schools.  

[00:01:39] Suzanne: Nice. So you're a little bit passionate about this, right, Mario? 

[00:01:46] Suzanne: It's not a very fun, fun, exciting topic, but it's necessary and very, very important. And I think this is a great way to kind of bring back that reminder of keeping ourselves professionals safe. And of course our clients coming through as well. [00:02:00]  

[00:02:01] Mario: So some 25 plus years ago, the, the company that created Preempt. 

[00:02:07] Mario: Called by rocks technologies stumbled across a new formulation for disinfection. They patented it, and then they made it commercially available to hospitals that then went into dental facilities, veterinary facilities, and finally into pro beauty. So, I've been with that company from its inception to help with education to help with packaging, marketing, et cetera. 

[00:02:35] Mario: So, I'm very familiar with infection control upon across multiple platforms, but this 1 actually is the most exciting for me because beauty professionals are just such a wacky bunch. As to the more stiff people that you would encounter in a dental facility, or a veterinary facility, et cetera. But but they're all fun to work with, but I just love going to the trade [00:03:00] shows and I love teaching and I love talking about a topic that isn't terribly sexy, but as you say Quite important to to keep clients and and staff safe in those environments. 

[00:03:14] Suzanne: Yes. So what have you found in the last few years compared you have 25 years of experience? Have we have we gotten better with this situation? Is that a fair way to say it?  

[00:03:27] Mario: Yes and no. We got really good at it during the pandemic. And as many probably watching this will attest that was certainly a challenging few years out for everybody, but especially for the pro beauty industry that were for the most part shuttered or experienced closures or difficulty just performing their services because they are so slow. 

[00:03:50] Mario: Close, so it's very difficult to socially distance yourself when you're cutting somebody's hair or doing massage or doing their lashes. It's, it's really [00:04:00] upfront and personal and hence the, the exposure was the strongest. So, getting back post pandemic, we did a great job of continuing our. Precautionary interactions, but then people got tired of it. 

[00:04:17] Mario: The fatigue really kicked in. And I think I shared with you earlier that COVID has become a C word, but it really is negatively perceived and any now conversations about infection control are all right already. I had enough of that. Leave me alone. So we're starting to slowly get the conversation back on track. 

[00:04:39] Mario: And talk about germs that have been always present and not make it about COVID or the pandemic. And this is just sort of general. Information that really is there to keep you safe because you're there exposed to your clients each and every day. Yes, we also say we're going to keep our clients safe, but their interactions with us [00:05:00] are. 

[00:05:00] Mario: Once a week, once a month, but you're seeing clients each and every day. So really it is to protect the, the, the worker who needs to obviously stay healthy in order to be able to do their job and feel their best while they're doing so.  

[00:05:18] Suzanne: Is there how do you, what do you think is the most important thing to consider when dealing with germs in the workplace? 

[00:05:25] Mario: So when I go and teach at colleges, at schools the expectation is that we're going to go by the textbook and tell them about, you What germs are where they can be found, how they spread all those lovely things. But the most important thing, I think that I've encountered is just awareness. 

[00:05:45] Mario: And, and ignorance and, and knowledge of the, the dangers. The potential risks are the biggest consideration when it comes to battling germs in the workplace. If you don't know they're there, 'cause you can't see them, it's easy [00:06:00] to see a dirty kitchen, right? The dishes are stacked up, the corners are dusty, there's mess on the floor and, you know, alright, it's time to clean the kitchen or the bathroom. 

[00:06:09] Mario: That's not the case with germs. They're, they're. They're invisible to the naked eye so you don't know, and there's nothing there that's screaming at you to say, start disinfecting now. So you have to use it as a precautionary method every time after a treatment or a service to really get rid of these. 

[00:06:28] Mario: These little unseen problems.  

[00:06:29] Suzanne: It kind of reminds me of I don't know, I might be dating myself on this one, but they used to show on TV they would purposely have someone's hands get into something, right. And then they would wash their hands and they would clean their area. And then later go back with the black light and show All of the little fingerprints and handprints that were all over their kitchen, their knobs, in their fridge, on their tomatoes, because they were touching everything. 

[00:06:59] Suzanne: So again, like [00:07:00] how you pointed out, the unseen, you don't see it, but you know, that, that whole visual side. I know that you usually do presentations, which I wish our viewers could see that with you. Maybe one day we'll be able to get a visual of you doing it, because I, I understand it's a lot of fun and entertaining in person. 

[00:07:17] Suzanne: When I go into a  

[00:07:18] Mario: school environment we always have like little trinkets that we can share with people who attend. And I happily hand them out, I shake hands, I, I interact with all the students. Then during the, the demonstration, I get a can of shaving cream out and I spray my work surface. The, the items are going to be interacting with. 

[00:07:41] Mario: My hands, my phone, my water bottle, et cetera. And in the course of doing the lecture, I'm touching my face, I'm touching my items that I'm working with, et cetera. And then I go back into the audience, and I offer them the same little gifty things that we did, or offer to shake my hands, and everyone just sort of does [00:08:00] this. 

[00:08:00] Mario: And I said, well, what's the difference here? Those germs were always present. I'm just now making it a little bit more visually understandable with shaving cream. But that's the, that's the reaction you should always be having that there are always going to be those terms present that you have to deal with just because you can't see them. 

[00:08:19] Mario: It doesn't mean they're not there.  

[00:08:22] Darine: That's part of the art though. And in your, originally you talked about like awareness, right? So knowing that they're there even though you can't see them. Do you have an example of, or a situation where that lack of awareness has led to some kind of increase in risk or infection? 

[00:08:39] Darine: Like a real life example you can share with us?  

[00:08:42] Mario: So the, the health authorities, at least in Canada, will do inspections and if they do not see the presence of disinfectants and cleaning practices and protocols in place, you will get a summons, you will get put on notice if, if it's repeated, [00:09:00] it gets, it gets, it gets you a fine, it gets you maybe shut down for a few days. Those are under the most extreme of, of examples. They do that because they have been able to trace infections originating from a salon or from a spa. These are not uncommon. They do happen. Anyone who's had a nail fungus, Didn't get that from sitting at home watching Netflix. 

[00:09:27] Mario: They did that because they went to a spa that didn't have proper cleaning practices after a pedicure or after a manicure. There are skin infections that can be acquired through interaction in places that haven't been properly cleaned and disinfected. They're, they're not. Super rare, they're not super common. 

[00:09:52] Mario: So we try not to use we not to try to single out any salon or spa [00:10:00] and say, don't be like those people in kitchen or don't be like those people in New York. Because I think that they themselves. didn't want that to happen. Nobody wants that negative consequence, right? So calling them out and shaming them is not the approach we should be taking, but just saying, hey, let's use this as a learning opportunity to better understand what we could have done different, what we can do to prevent any issues like that arising in the future. 

[00:10:29] Darine: So how can our listeners, if they are interested in knowing that they're doing the right thing, because like you said, a lot of times. You're, you're going about it with the best of intentions, thinking you're doing the right thing. What, where can they go? How do they find out if they're doing enough? 

[00:10:46] Darine: Without Health Canada or whatever the US equivalent is.  

[00:10:50] Mario: Right. Without the inspectors knocking on your door.  

[00:10:52] Darine: Yeah. Yeah.  

[00:10:54] Mario: So you, you definitely should review your infection and cleaning protocols [00:11:00] after every appointment service or treatment. There has to be a certain routine. If you're, let's say a massage therapist, you know that you need to take the sheets off. 

[00:11:11] Mario: And and replace them. But you also, by law, have to disinfect the, the bed. You have to disinfect the craters. These are places where germs can reside and over the course of the day, these germs will. Multiply grow and increase. So by the end of the day, if you've done no disinfecting your cleaning, you're you're asking for for trouble. 

[00:11:35] Mario: And you certainly as as consumers, we certainly do not want to frequent those places either. You wouldn't go to a dirty restaurant. You wouldn't go to a messy hotel room. The same holds true for a salon or spa. So, the best way to go about figuring out what you should be doing and what you perhaps are not doing if you do go to the preempt disinfectants [00:12:00] website, we have lots of great education there sorted out by who you are. 

[00:12:05] Mario: So if you're a massage therapist, here's what you should be doing. If you're a Nail Tech, here's what you should be doing. If you're a Lashista, here's what you should be doing. And it's all sort of very laid out in steps to say, before, after, during, and after. It can be very simple. It can be very straightforward. 

[00:12:23] Mario: It can be very safe as well. 1 of the things that I do lecture on is the disinfectants that have been in use for decades and decades and decades. The ones that use alcohol, the ones that use bleach the, yes, they do kill germs, but they also have many health side. Side effects, they perhaps will induce headaches over the course of the day. 

[00:12:46] Mario: They'll have skin reactions they may cause nausea. And long term exposure has even more complications. So, one of the things that I, I, I really emphasize is be aware of what's on the label [00:13:00] as precautionary language and also be aware on what the manufacturer puts out in the SDS, the safety data sheets for those additional precautionary language. 

[00:13:09] Mario: And it's, and it's, it's fine that you use those disinfectants. You know, you don't have to worry about that. You don't have to worry about those gloves or those cleaners, but just be aware of what the warnings are and then make the decision as to whether you want to work that particular work with that particular, the product because now there are alternatives that are a lot safer, just as potent or powerful and even equal friendly. 

[00:13:31] Suzanne: A lot of beauty professionals feel if they just wear gloves that they're protected. Can you speak to that?  

[00:13:39] Mario: Yeah, so again, I love doing that lecture. So my shaving cream example, so I'll now coat my gloved hands and shaving cream and I'll touch a whole bunch of different objects. My hands stay obviously germ free because I've not interacted with them at the end of the day. 

[00:13:56] Mario: I take those gloves off and I now start tidying up my [00:14:00] workstation, my treatment area. I'm touching all those objects that were previously now covered in shaving cream again, an innocent touch to my face to my. And I potentially ingested those germs, or I put them on my body. So yes, gloves help you in the moment. 

[00:14:18] Mario: They sometimes induce this sense of safety or confidence that, that is not over time merited because you still are spreading all those germs elsewhere. So, by all means, wear gloves, but do not skip out on those cleaning and disinfecting practices.  

[00:14:42] Suzanne: Yeah, it's interesting because I think we're more, like you said, in the food industry, a little more aware. 

[00:14:47] Suzanne: So you think of someone who's in front of you, maybe making your food, and you see them with their gloves. And I've been, I've been like, Oh my God, they just went to the cash register with their gloves. And now they're going back to your food. [00:15:00] So, how do we correlate that, like you just mentioned, in our industry, of all the places that we've been touching and then going back to it. 

[00:15:08] Suzanne: So, I love the shaving cream analogy. I hope it gives our viewers an idea of what that looks like when you're touching everything else. Because, like you said, germs, you know, It could be one spore missed in that cleaning and it turns into millions by the end of the day and that's how it spreads, right? Is that, you know, go back to bacteriology everybody and think about multiply and divide because that's  

[00:15:31] Mario: what  

[00:15:31] Suzanne: they keep doing, right? 

[00:15:32] Suzanne: Over and over.  

[00:15:34] Mario: So bacteria multiply double every 20 minutes. So that means one bacteria in the morning. By the end of eight hours is a million and you need just a few thousand bacteria to to be of sufficient loads to provide for an infection. So they're in our midst it, it, it poses a risk. Things can be done to prevent that. 

[00:15:58] Suzanne: I like that. [00:16:00] That's a good way of saying it. Hopefully people understand that. Well, that's how you said you could have started off with one germ. Right in the morning. And by the end of the day, how many you know, gel fills did you do? How many pedicures? How many, you know, how many people did you go through with that? 

[00:16:16] Suzanne: So it's important for people to understand. There's another thing I wanted to know if you could talk a little bit about hearing about that contact time. What does that exactly mean?  

[00:16:26] Mario: So that's one of the topics that are really misunderstood. And I think we see this whenever we go to a restaurant and they, you know, they go on a tabletop and then they wipe it down. 

[00:16:39] Mario: With that rag that no doubt is wiped down any number of other tables. So what you've done is you've just transferred germs from one table to another. But what gets me is that the, the surface, whatever item that you're interacting with, with a disinfectant. It has to stay wet for a certain prescribed amount of time, as per the [00:17:00] label. 

[00:17:00] Mario: So when you go to a restaurant and they just go do that, and then they wipe it all down, well, any of that sanitizing or disinfecting has also now been wiped away. And and hence you're not killing those germs. The weird part about that is that some products take as long as 4 to 10 minutes of wet contact time. 

[00:17:21] Mario: So that surface has to stay wet. You cannot use it for the full 10 minutes. Until it's done its job. What ends up happening, however, is a lot of these disinfectants that are formulated with alcohol dry up before that full contact time is achieved what we call premature evaporation. And and so you would need to reapply it. 

[00:17:43] Mario: So you're babysitting this chore or this task with a certain amount of uncertainty because when did it dry out? Did it dry out up here a little bit 1st or were there? So you really need a disinfectant that can keep a surface. Wet for the prescribed amount of time. For [00:18:00] instance, preempt is 3 minutes and it's a case of one and done. 

[00:18:03] Mario: You wipe your surface down, you spray a surface, and it can stay wet for that full 3 minutes to do, to do the job. The analogy I use is when you put pasta in your boiling water, you can't immediately take it out. You have to wait that 8, 6, 12 minutes, depending on the type of pasta you're cooking before you can take it out and eat it. 

[00:18:25] Mario: If you recall, during the pandemic, and we had to go into grocery stores, and they had the little Lysol wipes, they wipe down our carriage handles with and remember, they wipe it down. And then they, they just handed it to you. Right? So, Lysol has a 4 minute contact time. So what really should have happened is we should have waited 4 minutes before that carriage was given to us. 

[00:18:46] Mario: So it was really mostly theater rather than actually doing something. So again, it's one of those things that in a busy salon or spa environment gets short changed. So you should really be working with disinfectants that can [00:19:00] deliver on that time. And then of course, adhere to that time in, in your practices. 

[00:19:07] Suzanne: I see. So then what they can do is spray their areas of whatever it's their trolley, make lamps or table, whatever it may be, and then leave it and walk away and go. Get your next client or whatever it is you got to do and then come back and it should be The time frame with that depending on the product you're using is what you're saying,  

[00:19:26] Mario: correct? 

[00:19:28] Mario: Now you can elect to wipe it Off if there is still some residual wetness Or you can just let it air dry. There's no harm in leaving it for a longer period of time.  

[00:19:40] Suzanne: You know, coming back to your web, the website, Priyam that's actually what started this conversation was because when I went on there I was, I can't believe how much work has been put into this website with free information and training on there. 

[00:19:54] Suzanne: And I think it's amazing. You can go to each province. And find out [00:20:00] each it'll lead you to your protocols of what is necessary. So you need to, it is on us as professionals to stay on up to date. And that's the best way to do it is go to your. province, which you guys have kindly provided there in your website. 

[00:20:14] Suzanne: And also you have trainings. So not just a base level, little reminder course, you actually have different degrees and different levels for free. And you can actually, when you complete it, there's there's some that you can probably talk more about this scenario, but where you're actually taking a course. 

[00:20:32] Suzanne: And I've shared that with people and said, you should be posting your certificate at the end, showing your clients that you're on top of this. As you said, we've fallen off the wagon a little bit a little too much, I think on, on that, on those protocols. And it just shows your, your clients as well, that you really do care about the environment in your business that you're doing. 

[00:20:53] Suzanne: So the website, we'll add it in our, um, what's it called, Dreen? Okay. Our description, our talk, our [00:21:00] description, she'll have, she'll put the link in there. So if folks need to take a look, I encourage you to go there because it's amazing the amount that you guys have put into this. So I thank you, we thank you for that because it's yeah, incredible. 

[00:21:14] Mario: Suzanne, we our first and foremost belief is education and then marrying that up with the right product. So Virox and C 1 are big believers of knowledge and that infection prevention course I created that one. 10 years ago for preempt for the American product. It's a little bit more recent, but both those courses collectively have been taken over 50, 000 times. 

[00:21:42] Mario: So 50, 000 individual spas and salons have taken that. Certification course, as you say, it's free. You get a nice personalized certificate at the end of it. You can post it on social, put it on your website put it on your walls and let your clients know that you have an [00:22:00] elevated understanding of infection control in a bit to keep them safe while in your care. 

[00:22:06] Mario: It's it's great content again. I did not take a textbook approach. I tried to make it a little bit fun, a little bit engaging. So you'll learn, but you'll also have some fun along the way. I really do encourage everyone to, at the very least, start that and that'll give you a good foundation to. Continue with your your your best practices. 

[00:22:30] Suzanne: That's great. Well, thank you for your time. We really appreciate you coming on. As we said, I know sometimes it's not the most exciting topic, but a definite necessary reminder and and speaking on preempt on what they've done. They're there to help as well. And if if People don't know where to find preamp. 

[00:22:48] Suzanne: I think you can go on the website and you'll find a distributor. As you said, there's many, many caring preamp. So if anyone wants to know a little bit more about that, they can visit the website or talk to their [00:23:00] distributor. Thanks for your time today, Mario. Really appreciate it.  

[00:23:03] Mario: Thank you all for your interest. 

[00:23:05] Mario: Stay safe and good luck.