Because of its increasing popularity, body piercing has attracted a lot of unqualified and ill-informed people who are doing it just for a quick profit. Therefore, utmost caution should be exercised when selecting a body piercer. Proper body piercing requires a great deal of experience and knowledge of a broad range of subjects, most importantly proper cross contamination and sterilization procedures due to the high-risk transmission of blood borne pathogens between patients.
Unlike doctors, nurses and health professionals who receive extensive formal education, all you require to operate as a body piercer is the registration of your operating premises. These requirements are minimal and only deal with hygiene principals. There is no requirement that the piercer exhibit any knowledge of aftercare, proper metals, appropriate jewellery and placement, aseptic technique, anatomy, physiology, psychology or any other of the many skills needed to perform a piercing safely.
You will be better served by going to a person who specializes solely in body piercing because they spend all their time perfecting just one skill. The best way to judge a piercer's skill is to look a their work; if you see someone with a piercing that looks good ask him or her where they got it done.

Important questions to ask your body piercer before getting pierced:


DO YOU...

Sterilize all your equipment and jewelery in an autoclave?

Spore test your autoclave atleast monthly?

Use sterile, single disposable needles?

Pierce customers in a special, separate room?

Use fresh disposable medical grade latex gloves with every client and wash your hands between clients?

Only use Titanium, Niobium, 14-18-Karat solid Gold, Platinum, Certified 316L VM grade Stainless Steel, Teflon/PTFE or Pyrex?

Have a Erie County Health Department Liscence issued by the local health department?

Provide your customers with verbal and written advice on piercing aftercare?

Make yourself available for further assistance if required?

Measure how the person who you talk with answers your concerns. Are they considerate and thorough, or are they annoyed by your questions? You have a right to have your questions answered thoroughly in advance. When you get there, check out the studio. Make sure it looks and feels clean.If you get there and you are uncomfortable, you can leave.