It always amazes me the amount of new clients we have in the salon who are surprised at having to fill in a consultation card because they have "never had to fill one in before".
Now don't get me wrong - I am not surprised at the clients themselves, but at the salons they have previously been to. Before training in the beauty industry I too would have had no idea of the importance of filling one of these in. Had I gone to a salon and not been asked, it would not have entered my mind as unreasonable.
But the simple fact is, these are VERY important indeed.
At first glance it may seem a little personal - but rest assured all information given to us is strictly confidential and would never be sold to another company. And the main objective: to find any contraindications or contra-actions to a treatment.
So what is a contraindication? Well, put simply, a contraindication is a 'reason' (ie condition or factor) a treatment cannot be performed at that time. And a contra-action is a 'reason' a treatment might have to be adapted.
As a professional beauty therapist, our main objective is to ensure the safety of each and every client that enters our doors; and once established, to provide the best treatment we can. The consultation process not only provides the best opportunity to do this, but also ensures our insurance is valid and covers both the client and the salon during the time they are with us. And I'm sure you will agree, valid insurance is also very important.
What a lot of people do not realise, is that every treatment has it's own contraindications and contra-actions. There are a lot of things that can affect a client's health and wellbeing if the consultation process or treatment is not carried out correctly.
Usually medical, contraindications can range from medical conditions, medication and even recent medical procedures. Other contraindications include being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or even another treatment (some treatments will contraindicate others if done within a certain time frame of each other). Contra-actions can include things like pregnancy (this may contraindicate in some circumstances), cuts/bruises/abrasions, or broken bones - these do not necessarily mean a treatment cannot be performed, but it will have to be adapted to work around these factors.
Establishing contraindications before a treatment can commence not only ensures the safety of yourself, but also our therapists and all other clients coming to the salon. Some treatments may aggravate a condition making it worse, or even spread an infection.
And while we know it can be frustrating if your chosen treatment cannot be performed on the day, please be assured that it is for your own safety. We will deal with the situation professionally and calmly, and always offer an alternative treatment where possible.
Please remember that we are NOT doctors. If we are not sure a treatment is safe to carry out, we will not go ahead until we have confirmation it is. If we find something that we need to double check, we will ask you to check with your GP first. We will explain exactly what we need you to obtain from them, and can even give you information or a letter to hand to them, to ensure your GP knows the full extent of the treatment itself.
So I ask of you this: please do not be offended when we ask you to fill out a medical form. It is all relevant, very necessary, and extremely important. Failure to fill out and sign a medical form with us means that we are unable to carry out any treatments on you. Yes we will keep these on file, but we will never share this information with anyone other than Utopia employees.
And please remember the importance of filling one of these in - would you really want to go to a salon who did not take this seriously? :)
