HIV-positive man refused piercing
A HIV-positive Cranbourne man says he was left feeling 鈥渄iscriminated against鈥� after
being turned away from a piercing studio.
John (surname withheld) said a piercer at Divine Results Beauty Clinic in Cranbourne told him she could not go ahead with his requested nipple piercing because the wound wouldn鈥檛 heal properly.
He believes he was refused the piercing because he declared his HIV status.
鈥淚鈥檝e ticked [the form] to be honest and she said, 鈥楤ecause of what you鈥檝e written on the form, we can鈥檛 go any further鈥�,鈥� John said.
鈥淚 asked why, and she said, 鈥楤ecause you will not heal鈥�. I told her I wasn鈥檛 a hemophiliac 颅鈥� what do you mean I won鈥檛 heal?鈥�
John said he then went to a tattooist who pierced his nipple.
鈥淚 felt so small,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f I was to lie on that form, she would have done my piercing. I didn鈥檛 even fill out a form up the road.鈥�
Clinic owner Julie Byers said there had been 鈥渁 crossed line of communication鈥�.
鈥淭he health chart we get everyone to fill out, legally we only have to get proof of ID, but I always check if they have diabetes, are on blood thinners, [have] AIDS, anything like that, because piercings won鈥檛 heal as well as people without any afflicted diseases,鈥� she told the Star Observer.
鈥淚 always advise not to get it done, but of course we can never say, 鈥楴o we can鈥檛 do it鈥�.
鈥淚f he feels that, we鈥檙e deeply sorry … he鈥檚 more than welcome to come back and we鈥檒l pierce it for him, but he has to be aware that with AIDS there is a slower healing time.鈥�
Byers rejected any suggestion that the clinic or piercer had a fear of transmission.
鈥淣o, not at all, I have friends with AIDS, and they鈥檝e had piercings, but again, normally [piercing] takes four to six months to heal, theirs has taken a year to heal.鈥�
Victorian AIDS Council/Gay Men鈥檚 Health Centre medical services clinical director Dr B K Tee said when a HIV-positive person鈥檚 CD4 cells were low 鈥� usually a count under 200 鈥� there could be issues with wounds healing.
鈥淚 do not expect a layperson to have enough clinical knowledge of the HIV positive client鈥檚 health condition to make a clinical judgement,鈥� he said.
鈥淲ith medical knowledge I do not think an HIV positive person should avoid piercings provided his/her immune system isn鈥檛 too low and that he/she takes the necessary precautions to avoid infections.鈥�
Dr Tee said the beauty clinic should consider reviewing its policy to avoid misunderstanding by giving HIV-positive people a chance to show a letter from their doctor giving them the go-ahead to safely have a piercing.
Victorian AIDS Council executive director Matt Dixon said the incident shows tattooists and body piercers should get to grips about their obligations to clients.
PLWHA Victoria president Paul Kidd it鈥檚 illegal for tattooists or body piercers to refuse service to people with HIV and said situations like this can make people living with HIV fear disclosing their status.
鈥淚t鈥檚 the reason HIV positive people are reluctant to disclose their status when assumptions are made which are often plain wrong,鈥� he said.
Actually, this woman is correct. I have diabetes and nose and cartilage piercings STILL aren’t healed. It’s the same with all diseases that cause problems with your immune system.
I think you are all overreacting. She probably is uneducated, but not everyone comes across HIV/AIDS in their normal day.
She provided an example of how the healing process can be slowed down, and even Dr B K Tee said that the healing process can become slower.
I think it was just a misunderstanding.
Ed: Anyone working in the field of tattooing or piercing should be trained around blood borne viruses. To have someone employed in that field who is ignorant of those issues is highly unprofessional at the very least.
This woman has shown herself to be totally uneducated by referring to this gentleman has having AIDS instead of HIV. In addition, being HIV+ has no bearing on any so called ‘healing process’
This business should be black-banned.
Sorry to hear that John.
It is an assumption made on you, without any facts. Even if you were not sure you would ask for a letter from a doctor. I can only conclude the clinic is discriminating. Sounds like the Department of Health should investigate also.