People pierced at unapproved northeast parlour urged to get tested
23.05.12
CALGARY - Albertaâs health authority was forced to issue a public warning for the fourth time in the past year, after discovering an unapproved piercing business or tattoo parlour operating under unsanitary conditions.
Public health officials appealed to the media for help Wednesday in informing clients of Avon Apna Jewellers that they may have been infected with blood-borne viruses such as hepatitis or HIV during an ear or body piercing performed at the business in northeast Calgary.
The timing of the advisory by Alberta Health Services â issued three months after public health officials discovered an infected individual with hepatitis had received a piercing at the jeweller and ordered owners Rashmi and Naresh Bhalla to close their business â is prompting questions about the health authorityâs abilities and vigilance.
Dr. David Swann, the Liberal health critic and a former medical officer of health, said the province needs to beef up its regulation of the piercing and tattoo industry to prevent life-threatening infections and avoid the expense of testing hundreds of customers.
Source: Calgary Herald