Criminal Negligence and Bureacratic Ineffectuality

The local paper recently had an article about a lowlife operating a tattoo shop out of his apartment, and his lack of proper hygienic procedure. Sadly this hasn’t been an isolated incident around here.  There have been at least a half dozen in as many months, all within a half hour drive from here. Shops with broken autoclaves and operating for months like that, operating with no autoclave at all, half assed home setups, with absolutely no attempt at proper hygiene.


Home Tattooist Risk

Danielle Wong
The Hamilton Spectator
(July 27, 2010)

Hamilton public health is warning clients of an unlicensed tattoo artist operating out of a west end apartment to seek medical attention after it found the artist did not sterilize equipment between customers.

The department says Tyler Robert Green, who operated under the name Green House Tattoos at 918 Main Street West, Apartment 1, has been issued an order under the Health Protection and Promotion Act to stop tattooing until appropriate cleaning and disinfection of equipment is established.

Associate medical officer of health Dr. Chris Mackie said the most serious risks are blood-borne infections including Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV. Clients could also contract bacterial infections.

Mackie said public health does not have data on how long Green had been in business or how many people he tattooed because Green did not keep records or would not present them. But Green’s business website shows more than 70 tattoos he has done, so “at least that many people or more” may be at risk, Mackie said.

Last month, public health issued a warning about two other tattoo artists using unsterilized equipment in unlicensed home businesses. Mackie said that notice prompted people to come forward about Green’s business.

While the department doesn’t have enough data to determine if unlicensed home tattoo studios are a growing concern in Hamilton, they have not been seen frequently in the past, Mackie said.


Now everything about this on the face of it is bad enough. But what really got my dander up was the relatively limp and ineffectual response from Public Health. I wrote them a letter about my displeasure with their actions. 

I really think the response needed to be much stronger. I don’t get the wrist slap. “Okay, you can keep working, once you do what we tell you.” No! Charge him with Reckless Endangerment at the very least. How about Assault? How about Criminal Negligence?

My friends run a reputable tattoo shop. They’re legitimate, aboveboard, cooperate with the public health department  to the utmost, they keep meticulous records of who they do work on, so if there is ever a problem they can contact them, (which this weasel didn’t do), they pay for a business license (which skylines them to any regulatory bodies, as opposed to operating on the sly out of an apartment), they pay taxes, have proper spore tests done above and beyond what is required of them, they pay to have their biohazardous waste disposed of, they pay to attend bloodborne pathogen courses, will happily show anyone their scrub room and sterilization facilities, and explain the procedures, etc. They do the utmost to not only do stellar work, but also to protect the health of  their clientele while doing so.

This individual and his amateurish operation are a threat to more than just the people he tattooed. His irresponsible and frankly greedy actions endanger those around them as well.

This requires far, far more than a weak, “you can keep doing what you’re doing when you finally agree to our quite reasonable requests to maintain public health and safety” order. He needs to be criminally prosecuted.
 
This is an out and out example of criminally negligent behaviour. And there is absolutely no excuse for that.

Where is the punishment here? Where are the consequences for his actions? Anyone else like him will see there are no real repercussions to not spending the extra money to do it right. They’ll just get a toothless order from Public Health when they finally do get caught.

I know lots of fine people who have not only been striving to elevate the art of tattooing to incredible levels, but also the health and safety levels and social status. Their decade, two decade long efforts just got knocked back by this asswipe, and the response by any regulatory bodies amounted to little more than a “that was naughty. Mustn’t do that again.”

Deplorable on several levels.