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Masseusse with Hep C.
I am a masseusse and have recently been Dx with HepC. I've read through several of the questions/answers here and it has been very informative. I'd like to know if a masseusse can be sued for not telling her clients that she has HepC. Any help here would be greatly appreciated. I am struggling with the ethical and legal/liability sides to this. Thanks.....
My doctor called me today with the next set of test results. I have lots of antibodies!! She said I had probably been exposed to Hep C but my body has fought it off. I do not have the disease!!
Again, thank you to all of you who have taken the time to comment and advise. I wish you luck and the very best for all your futures.....
Sincerely, ktt
Again, thank you to all of you who have taken the time to comment and advise. I wish you luck and the very best for all your futures.....
Sincerely, ktt
Thanks again for sharing all the comments and info. You've given me a lot of food for thought. Be well.
I agree with Ala. You really DON'T have to disclose it to anyone. Many people are ignorant it seems, and they will not want to be treated by you, because they are scared. You are not going to bleed onto them treating them, so why disclose. You cannot transmit the disease to them anyway. You wouldn't tell people if you had candida, a sinus infection, or some other kind of ailment, so why tell them you have hep c. You CANNOT spread it by touching people, and that's what you do when you massage people.
It is NOT unethical not to tell your clients.
And you cannot be sued for not telling, as the information is confidential.
It is NOT unethical not to tell your clients.
And you cannot be sued for not telling, as the information is confidential.
p.s. I'm probably just a sociopath but I never worried about this issue nearly as much as some of y'all do back when I had measurable levels of virus, and now that I'm SVR I never even think about it at all.
If you don't have blood to blood transmission in the course of your work - whatever it is - I see no need for disclosure. Personally I wouldn't (and don't) disclose that I've ever had hcv. I'm sure that I've had health care providers with hcv and since I don't share my blood with them (or vice versa) - I don't really care.
As a massage therapist you must practice universal precautions. I always ask the client if they have any open sores or areas that may be need for concern. I also look at the body part before I work on it. I am a massage therapist and esthetician. As an esthetician I look at the skin with a mag lamp, gloved before I work with the skin. I have seen herpes that were not revealed and usually if someone getting a massage has a skin condition they will tell you.
Keep finger cots, gloves, band aids handy. Examine the body part you are working on before you dive in. It only takes a minute and the client doesn't even know you are doing it. Dont forget its blood to blood. There is also a product that you can apply to your hands to form a barrier, its like a liquid glove.
I do not do much massage or skin care anymore, but be cautious.
As an esthetician if I see anything open I just wear gloves the whole time, and let the client know its appropriate precaution, Its also the law..... but more than that its the right thing to do.
Keep finger cots, gloves, band aids handy. Examine the body part you are working on before you dive in. It only takes a minute and the client doesn't even know you are doing it. Dont forget its blood to blood. There is also a product that you can apply to your hands to form a barrier, its like a liquid glove.
I do not do much massage or skin care anymore, but be cautious.
As an esthetician if I see anything open I just wear gloves the whole time, and let the client know its appropriate precaution, Its also the law..... but more than that its the right thing to do.
Lapis has some great information. I did not tell my massage therapist I had HCV because by the time I started with her I was UND, altho still tx-ing.
I am very aware of any open skin I have and make the decision to have other areas worked that day. For instance, if I have itched spots on my legs raw, I'll have my arms worked on, ect...
As a therapist, I believe you are not supposed to touch open skin anyway, so you could simply avoid that area. If the client questions it, tell them it is for their protection as well as your own., And if you have broken skn...cover it-but that goes for everyone, not just us heppers.
You are so right, our skin is our largest barrier and no one takes that more seriously than those of us who deal with this type of a disease--you don't have to make an announcement to everyone you meet if you are not comfortable with that....just be smart about protecting yourself and others.
But remember, I'm not a lawyer-just a spokesperson =)
I will be interested to hear what any attorneys have to say as I am entering nursing myself.
Wish you the best,
Isobella
I am very aware of any open skin I have and make the decision to have other areas worked that day. For instance, if I have itched spots on my legs raw, I'll have my arms worked on, ect...
As a therapist, I believe you are not supposed to touch open skin anyway, so you could simply avoid that area. If the client questions it, tell them it is for their protection as well as your own., And if you have broken skn...cover it-but that goes for everyone, not just us heppers.
You are so right, our skin is our largest barrier and no one takes that more seriously than those of us who deal with this type of a disease--you don't have to make an announcement to everyone you meet if you are not comfortable with that....just be smart about protecting yourself and others.
But remember, I'm not a lawyer-just a spokesperson =)
I will be interested to hear what any attorneys have to say as I am entering nursing myself.
Wish you the best,
Isobella
If it were you,id be more worried about what kind of disease the client may have and may pass on to you,i would were gloves for everyone and say keep your personal problems to your self.
ktt:
I'm not a lawyer, but I am a massage therapist and also a nurse. I do not tell my clients I have (or HAD, I finished tx recently and am UND) HCV. It would likely cause them to have unwarranted concerns. I am a professional, I understand disease transmission, and I would never expose them to my blood.
The rule for massage therapists is, do not touch broken skin, and do not touch WITH broken skin (if YOUR skin is broken). If your cuticles are broken you probably need to wear a bandaid and a fingercot, or wear gloves. There is no need to explain this to your clients. If they ask, you can tell them you have a cut on your finger.
As someone else has said, anyone can sue for anything. As a professional therapist, you have no duty to report your health conditions to your clients. You do, however, have the responsibility of protecting them when your skin is broken.
springfever:
As a client, I do (or have in the past) told anyone who works with my body (other therapists, dentists, etc) of my health condition. It is safe for therapists to work with HCV clients as long as their general health is good and liver function is not compromised. Because massage changes the internal environment of the body (by increasing blood flow, etc), we have to be careful with clients who do not have good circulation, clients who have swelling in extremities, and so on. Most people with Hep C are healthy until the disease progresses, and massage is good for people!! And, even if a client did have progressed illness, gentle massage of hands, feet, and face can be very soothing and appropriate.
Best wishes to you both!
Lapis
I'm not a lawyer, but I am a massage therapist and also a nurse. I do not tell my clients I have (or HAD, I finished tx recently and am UND) HCV. It would likely cause them to have unwarranted concerns. I am a professional, I understand disease transmission, and I would never expose them to my blood.
The rule for massage therapists is, do not touch broken skin, and do not touch WITH broken skin (if YOUR skin is broken). If your cuticles are broken you probably need to wear a bandaid and a fingercot, or wear gloves. There is no need to explain this to your clients. If they ask, you can tell them you have a cut on your finger.
As someone else has said, anyone can sue for anything. As a professional therapist, you have no duty to report your health conditions to your clients. You do, however, have the responsibility of protecting them when your skin is broken.
springfever:
As a client, I do (or have in the past) told anyone who works with my body (other therapists, dentists, etc) of my health condition. It is safe for therapists to work with HCV clients as long as their general health is good and liver function is not compromised. Because massage changes the internal environment of the body (by increasing blood flow, etc), we have to be careful with clients who do not have good circulation, clients who have swelling in extremities, and so on. Most people with Hep C are healthy until the disease progresses, and massage is good for people!! And, even if a client did have progressed illness, gentle massage of hands, feet, and face can be very soothing and appropriate.
Best wishes to you both!
Lapis
http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Workplace/Archive/Confidentiality/Q9850.html
Above is a link from an HIV site that discusses disclosure and the law. I understand that HIV has more routes of transmission than HCV (both by blood but HIV in other body fluids such as semen).
Above is a link from an HIV site that discusses disclosure and the law. I understand that HIV has more routes of transmission than HCV (both by blood but HIV in other body fluids such as semen).
Thanks for the insight. Think I will be up front and give her the option. I sympathize with you, we all do, about feeling contaminated. I worked with babies when I was dx'd and struggled with those same feelings. I continued to work for about a year, and just took special care.
Sounds like you are newly dx'd. Good luck to you. Glad you found this forum..it's awesome.
Sounds like you are newly dx'd. Good luck to you. Glad you found this forum..it's awesome.
I'll try and flag my two attorney friends and see if they are around for you right now!
Hi- That first question is a doozy. I don't know. I've been diong research but not enough, not yet. To your next question....Yes, I did wear gloves. Just yesterday, first time and I told my client that I have HepC and gave him the option of having the massage or not. After serious pondering, he was cool with it. For me though, it was so emotionally draining. I feel so contaminated. I just can't go through that with every client.
Thanks...(FYI...no sex involved at all) This will seem odd but my fingernail cuticles often have broken or cracked areas. There's no blood visible at all but the natural barrier of skin is compromised.
I have a question for you. I'm in the process of setting up massage therapy and my delimna is .. do I tell the therapist I have hep C? Do you ever give massages with gloves on? Seems like there would be guidelines that your vocaion would have to deal with infectious diseases.
Thanks for your comments. I do hope one of the lawyers will give his/her opinion. My Dad was always my conscience and my best friend. I could always trust his wisdom. Heartbreakingly, he now resides in a nursing home across the street with severely prgressed Alzheimer's and Vascular Demensia.
In this country, anyone can be sued for anything.
To be cautious and responsible, if you have any open wounds on your hands or anywhere else that might contact your client, cover the wound up well. If you see an open wound on a client, avoid that area. The rule is to avoid blood to blood contact
But I don't think you need to disclose your status unless your massage involves sex. Unprotected sex (especially anal sex) with multiple partners, when HIV or other STD's are involved, can potentially transmit HCV.
To be cautious and responsible, if you have any open wounds on your hands or anywhere else that might contact your client, cover the wound up well. If you see an open wound on a client, avoid that area. The rule is to avoid blood to blood contact
But I don't think you need to disclose your status unless your massage involves sex. Unprotected sex (especially anal sex) with multiple partners, when HIV or other STD's are involved, can potentially transmit HCV.
I don't really think so but there are a couple of lawyers on the site and I am sure that they will be on to tell you. I think it would be very rare for you to be able to give it to someone that way as it is a blood to blood borne illness but like I said before I don't know any legalities involved or anything.
i've never quite heard a question like this one before and can't even take a guess - you have me stumped!
Good luck.
i've never quite heard a question like this one before and can't even take a guess - you have me stumped!
Good luck.
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