Dermatitis in hairdressing
Aim
To raise awareness of dermatitis, building on the success of the ‘Bad Hand Day?’ campaign, to provide advice and support to the industry and to take enforcement action where appropriate.
Justification
Hairdressing remains one of the occupations with the highest incidence rate of dermatitis; up to 70% of hairdressers suffer from some form of skin damage during their career. It is preventable and the control measures are simple.
Audience/Industry
Hairdressing salon owners/managers; hairdressing staff
Messages
- Up to 70% of hairdressers suffer from some form of skin damage
- Hairdressers are 17 times more likely to develop dermatitis than any other group of workers
- Dermatitis is caused by contact with chemicals present in hairdressing products, and prolonged contact with water
- Dermatitis causes personal suffering
- Dermatitis is unsightly and unpleasant
- Dermatitis can be easily prevented by following 5 simple steps
Activities required
- To visit hairdressing (and where appropriate, beauty) premises to raise awareness of dermatitis, its causes and the control measures.
- In re-visits to premises already visited or contacted, where no effort has been made to adopt good control practice, despite awareness of and presence of health risks, consider enforcement action.
- In addition, where work has been done already with local colleges, it may also be appropriate to continue this.
- Raise awareness through alternative interventions, such as running awareness days, possibly involving the local college(s).
- There may be situations where enforcement action needs to be considered, and in such cases support is available from HSE’s Occupational Health Inspectors, which you can access via your Partnership Team.
Timing
All year.
For information
Detailed guidance on this initiative and resources available to support it is given in:
Inspection guidance:
Specific information on dermatitis in hairdressing can be found at Bad Hand Day?. Further general information on contact dermatitis can also be found on HSE's Skin section and the Disease Reduction Programme (DRP).
Contact
skinproject@hse.gsi.gov.uk
