Why so few electrolysis practitioners?

Hair Removal Methods Professional Electrolysis
1

My question is this. Why if electrolysis is apparently so effective can I only find 4 electrolysis practitioners in N.Ireland but countless places offering laser hair removal?

I can’t find any recommendations or any info regarding any of the 4 electrolysis practitioners. How can I find out if they are any good? Has anybody in N.Ireland even had electrolysis??? I know if I had a positive/negative experience I would try to let as many others know because it is frustrating trying to base an important decision on nothing :frowning:

2

Because it is a very technical, precise procedure that requires a good eye and steady hand, not to mention stamina and basic instinct and a degree of contorting when the anatomy of a the client is such that proper positioning will not do it for you. I am very sore today after putting in a nine hour day yesterday and then spending another three hours taking care of my parents basic needs, who are in their 80’s and having mobility issues.

So, this is not an easy procedure to hone, it makes the body a little sore at times and just like everyone else, there is always stuff happening in our personal lives.Thank God for naprosin.

3

It is an interesting question: Why are there so few electrolysis practitioners and so many LASER practitioners?

4

Clever marketing. On the whole, this is an advertising driven buisness.

5

Yes indeed, it is a matter of marketing. Millions of people want to get rid of excess hair from men have their basic needs met. This translates into enormous economic potential.

Fifteen years ago laser became the hope of many people. A quick solution, painless, and permanent, seem to have found at last.
The laser has revolutionized the market. All companies (except Dectro) focused on manufacturing and selling lasers. The Electrolysis was unfairly discredited in some dirty campaigns. People who still did not know the Electrolysis, became known as a technique slow, painful and very, very expensive. However, even there is no laser that can match the results of Electrolysis in a single clearance.

Most schools in my country only offer training to give laser or IPL and discourage students to learn the craft of electrologist because according to them, this profession has no future. Meanwhile the few remaining are overflowing with so much work and without any advertising.

6

Electrolysis requires great skill and is much harder to do than laser.

Electrolysis requires more training than laser. (It only took me a weekend to be certified to administer laser.)

Electrolysis is not as financially lucrative as laser.

Administering electrolysis requires great physical endurance and laser does not.

These are just a few of the reasons why it is hard to find an electrologist.

Those of us who do electrolysis know that this is the last hope for those consumers who have not found hair removal success trying all of the other options.

Most times, the work is rewarding, especially for those of us who practice, who have had personal problems with unwanted hair.

7

Another factor in the paucity of electrolysis practitioners in many areas is the difference between a licensed area, and an unlicensed area. Where there are restrictions on performing the service, that unnecessarily increase the expenses related to starting and maintaining the practice, one will have fewer practitioners. Schools in licensed states have a hard time running programs as most would be students can’t afford to pay for the programs, and learn in them without being able to earn money during the exponentially long education process of electrolysis,k as opposed to the blink of an eye training (two days) to get certified to perform LASER.

If one were to go with the money, and get the LASER certificate first, and then go back for electrolysis training, one might decide that it is too much work for too little reward, as most people don’t have an electrolysis school close enough to commute without moving to another city for the duration of the training. Although apprenticeships are the best way to learn this scientific art, the majority of licensed states no longer have apprenticeship paths to licensure.

Of course, if apprenticeships were allowed, many (most?) practitioners would not want to “train the competition” anyway. Getting a good education in electrolysis is not as easy as falling off a log.

8

We looked into my wife getting a license in California. The state requires a 600 hour program from a state certified school. There are only a few schools and the cost is like $9000 and you have to go full time. This is difficult for adults that need to keep paying rent/mortgage. We could not a find a way to get trained part time like going to evening classes. Then, the next problem is that you have to work in a licensed salon. So if you want your own business, you have to rent a commercial space and get it state approved. I have no idea how much this would cost but in the SF Bay area it would cost a lot and carry a lot of risk. It did not seem possible to merely buy a machine and start small.

So the deck is really stacked financially against choosing electrolysis as a career path over laser. If it only takes two days to get laser licensed and there are so many more salons that could potentially hire you, it seems clear why there are few if any new people going for an electrolysis license.

9

Well it seems its not so easy to get laser certified in California so I am wondering where as mentioned in the above posts you can get certified in two days. Not in California. Here is a quote from the California medical board website.

"Who may use lasers or intense pulse light devices to remove hair, spider veins and tattoos?

Physicians may use lasers or intense pulse light devices. In addition, physician assistants and registered nurses (not licensed vocational nurses) may perform these treatments under a physician’s supervision. Unlicensed medical assistants, licensed vocational nurses, cosmetologists, electrologists, or estheticians may not legally perform these treatments under any circumstance, nor may registered nurses or physician assistants perform them independently, without supervision."

So you have to be at least an RN and a Dr. must own at least 51% of the business. It is exceedingly difficult to even get into an RN program in California, let alone get through it. It seems there is no such thing as getting laser certified at least here in CA.

10

There is no LASER license/certification for you to get.
The only recognized trainings are done in these two day courses given by the equipment manufacturers, trade schools and such.

You seem to have missed the legal loophole found in this clause:

“Unlicensed medical assistants, licensed vocational nurses, cosmetologists, electrologists, or estheticians may not legally perform these treatments under any circumstance, nor may registered nurses or physician assistants perform them independently, without supervision”

You will find that the legal definition of that statement may be conversed to say, “Unlicensed medical assistants, licensed vocational nurses, cosmetologists, electrologists, or estheticians may legally perform these treatments under any circumstance, in addition to registered nurses and physician assistants may perform them independently, with supervision”

And who would qualify as approved supervision? A Doctor, of course.

SO, if you are one of the described persons, and you have a Doctor willing to sign that he/she is your Supervisor, go take your 2 day class, and Zap Away!

Actually, the word play really states that anyone can do it if a doctor is signed on. People get confused by the slight of hand where they seem to name one set, then another set, but in all cases, the language just comes back to saying, whoever you are, if you are not a physician, you need a physician to sign on that he is your supervisor. After all, an “unlicensed medical assistant” is anyone who walks off the street and is hired by any facility or business practicing medical treatments.

11

The other problem is that there are only about 10 schools for the whole country (including one recently added to the AEA web site, and I couldn’t find any that were not listed there.) I am glad apprenticeship is still an option in NY state; I am not sure if one could get a license in a licensed state if they decided to move to a licensed state down the road (without having to go through a program to learn something you already know and have been doing for years.)

Ironically, there was one in upstate NY not too far from me many years ago. I remember the Continental School of Beauty offering a course in electrology, but that disappeared shortly after laser hit the scene.

12

In some states like New Jersey, only MDs can perform laser. It all varies by state. Same with electrolysis. Some states don’t require that much either.

The reason there are so many laser places is because it’s a lucrative business where all one needs to do is buy a machine, get a quick coarse, and start bringing in the dough (many charge for packages up front). Electrolysis treats one hair at a time, so it’s hard to find people who are willing to commit and to go for over a year regularly. The ones that do usually have relatively excessive hair issues. An average person who doesn’t have issues shaving or waxing isn’t willing to commit the time and money. Laser treatments are quick, so more people are willing to give it a shot. Plus, there is a lot of misinformation being promoted on what it can actually achieve and on what type of hair, so even more people jump on it to try it out. That’s just marketing that electrologists who aren’t part of big business like laser manufacturers can’t afford.