Client consultations are a crucial part of being in the professional beauty industry. They protect both the client and you and ensure that you do not perform any treatments on a client that may be detrimental to their wellbeing.

It also protects you in the unlikely event of a client making an insurance claim against you. It strictly shows that you took all the steps required of you and it shows the health information that the client told you, which is the information that you used to decide to proceed the treatment with.

Consultation forms are part of a criterion for standard legal operating procedure in the Beauty Industry and are drilled into beauty professional’s routine from day one. A consultation card is used to find out if there are any contra-indications which may prevent the beauty therapist from carrying out a treatment. All salon professionals carrying out treatments must keep their client’s consultation cards and ensure that they are stored in a cabinet which can be locked in order to comply with the data protection act.

The client consultation information should include:

 ~ Personal details   ~ Medical History   ~ Contra-Indications   ~ Clients lifestyle   ~ Treatment record

You should also remember to:

 ~ Have the client sign the form   ~ Review the form   ~ Question anything that is unclear

You should only carry out a treatment after surgery if a written letter from a doctor is given to you before the treatment is carried out.

When carrying out a client consultation you should be looking for contra-indications to the treatment. Contra-Indications are health conditions that the client may have which mean that you should be cautions or possibly avoid working on those specific areas of the body. In more extreme cases you may need to avoid treatment altogether.

It is important that you check with your insurance company to determine which contra-indications they require you to check for; the list of contra-indications can differ between insurers. Therefore, If you do not check for their list of contra-indications, then you may find that you are not covered should a client make a claim against you.

If the client is a regular, you should ask them to check the consultation form that they have filled in and inform you of any changes. Once you have determined that it is safe to proceed with the treatment, take the client to the treatment area and perform the treatment.

Following the treatment, you should assess the treatment, make notes of any observations that you made during the treatment and give the client after care advice.