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Celebrity stylist Ceira Lambert has said it is “deeply unfair” that the country’s hair salons have to close for an indefinite period when restrictions begin on December 24.
The Cabinteely salon owner said that, like so many others, he had a flood of customers in the summer months due to pent-up demand.
Since many of her clients come to her salon for hair extensions, which last four to six months, they had to get them out in January and February.
Ms. Lambert was also “furious” after a customer in the salon tested positive for Covid earlier this month as we grapple with the third wave of the virus.
Although the woman spent 3.5 hours sitting in her premises, no one from the HSE contact tracing system informed her of the positive case.
Ms. Lambert was only alerted to the Covid case after several members of her team received an alert from the HSE’s Covid app, saying they had recently been in contact with a person who had the virus.
The client tested positive three days after visiting the salon and several salon staff received the alert two days later. The stylist who had done her hair did not receive an alert as she did not have the application installed.
But Ms Lambert had to do her own research to find out which customer had been infected and spent nearly € 1,000 privately testing her staff.
Taking matters into her own hands, she also called all clients who had visited the salon that morning to inform them that one client had tested positive.
When she called HSE to ask why no one had contacted her directly, she said they told her it was not in their policy, as hair salons are considered low-risk places. The stylist was not considered a close contact, despite spending more than three hours near her.
“I’m fuming, really. When the HSE lady said that my staff member who had been touching her head for three and a half hours was not considered a close contact, I couldn’t understand that.
“And if hairdressers are considered so safe, then why are they closing us again?
“It just doesn’t make any sense. I feel like it’s very unfair that we have to finish early on Christmas Eve and we don’t know when we can reopen.
“We have a lot of people booked for January as they felt more comfortable going in when it was a quieter time and we don’t know when we’ll be able to see them.”
She said all of her clients and staff members thankfully tested negative for Covid-19, but said there were obviously big problems with HSE’s contact tracing system.
“What if none of my staff members didn’t have the Covid app? We would never have known about this. It’s just not good enough,” he said.
An HSE spokesperson said: “The HSE cannot comment on individual cases as doing so would violate our duty of confidentiality to the individuals and facilities in question. Maintaining confidentiality is not only an ethical requirement for the HSE, it is also a legal requirement as defined in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) together with the Data Protection Laws 1988-2018.
“Spending more than two hours indoors with someone who has Covid-19 will sometimes count as close or casual contact. But it will depend on the size of the room and other factors. Public health physicians or contact trackers will let you know if you are at risk during contact tracing and public health risk assessments.
“If you think you are a close contact but have not been contacted by contact tracing: restrict your movements (stay home) and contact the Covid-19 helpline and tell them that you have been in close contact with someone who tested positive in the Covid-19 test. “
Irish independent
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