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| CHOOSING AN ELECTROLOGIST |
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Training
and Licensing Issues
It is
natural to wonder if electrology is an area of professional health
science, part of the beauty and cosmetology industry, or unregulated and
uncontrolled business.
The field
of electrology is made up of all of the above.
For our
purposes, we are interested in finding an electrologist who may be
considered a non-physician health care professional. These
qualifications are needed due to the degree of physical treatment
involved in permanent beard removal.
Currently,
only thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have any type of
licensure requirements. Of those licensed states, most are regulated by
boards of barbering & cosmetology, and the remained states, by
boards of health or the office of the medical examiner. For specific
information about your state, please see Licensed States in the resources
section.
While the
particular type of licensing board is not really an issue, the proper
training is important.
In
addition to licensing, electrologists may also test for a certification.
There are certifications offered by two nationally recognized
electrology associations. The two national associations are the
American Electrology Association (AEA) and the Society of Clinical &
Medical Electrologists (SCME).
The AEA
maintains an accreditation designated as Certified Professional
Electrologist (CPE), and the SCME maintains an accreditation
designated as Certified Clinical Electrologist (CCE). The
certifications are generally considered equivalent and are also used, in
part, as a licensing criterion by some state's electrology boards.
Electrology
certification is particularly important in the remaining nineteen unlicensed
states as it offers some assurance of competency. But keep in
mind that professional licensure does not always mean professional
training. Here is an exception to the licensing training
requirements: a grandfathering phase which eliminates or lowers
training requirements. In this case, licensure may not provide
any assurance to you that an electrologist who has been grandfathered
into licensed practice meets any training requirements.
For more
information concerning the basic areas of knowledge and coursework for
the trained electrologist, please see Professional
Study. |
