Client Consultation, Communication, and Professional Ethics
Consultation
Use open-ended questions, active listening, and a written intake: medications, allergies, pregnancy, recent procedures, home care, and expectations. Explain the plan, risks, alternatives, and aftercare; obtain informed consent. Confirm identity and privacy. Keep records factual and objective.
Communication and ethics
Stay within scope: educate, do not diagnose or prescribe. Refer medical concerns. Respect boundaries, avoid pressure selling, and disclose conflicts. Protect confidentiality in conversation, records, and social media; do not post client images without written permission. Be culturally sensitive and use professional language.
Documentation
Record the date, service, products, patch test results, client statements, consent, and any adverse reaction. If a client declines a recommendation, note it. Accurate records protect the client and the licensee.
Traps
Questions often show a client asking for a diagnosis or a “guaranteed” result. The correct response is to explain limits and refer. Another trap is discussing a client’s service with others or posting before/after photos without consent. Do not continue a service when a contraindication appears.
Worked rule
If the client says, “Just tell me what this spot is,” respond: “I can’t diagnose, but I can note it and recommend a dermatologist if it is new, changing, or bleeding.”