North Carolina Cosmetology License Exam — All Questions

Under North Carolina sanitation rules, how must reusable tools that touch a client (such as metal shears or nippers) be handled between clients?

• a.Rinsed under warm tap water only
• b.Wiped with a dry towel and reused immediately
• c.Cleaned and then disinfected with an appropriate EPA-registered disinfectant before reuse✓
• d.Set aside to air out for a few minutes

North Carolina's health and safety code, like the standard of care nationwide, requires that multi-use implements be cleaned to remove debris and then disinfected with an EPA-registered disinfectant labeled for that use before another client is served. Rinsing, wiping, or airing does not disinfect and leaves pathogens on the tool. Proper disinfection between clients is a core inspection item.

How should single-use (disposable) items like nail files, orangewood sticks, or wax applicators be handled in a North Carolina salon?

• a.Discarded after one client and never reused on another person✓
• b.Disinfected and reused on the next client
• c.Reused until they physically wear out
• d.Shared within a single family only

Porous single-use items cannot be effectively disinfected because pathogens lodge in the material, so North Carolina rules and standard practice require discarding them after one use. Reusing them on another person, even after wiping, risks spreading infection. Only nonporous implements that can be cleaned and disinfected may be reused.

If a client bleeds during a service in a North Carolina salon, what is the correct infection-control response?

• a.Continue the service and wipe the blood with a shared towel
• b.Stop, put on gloves, treat and cover the wound, and clean and disinfect any surfaces or tools that contacted blood, discarding single-use items✓
• c.Ask the client to finish the service themselves
• d.Do nothing because small amounts of blood are harmless

Blood can transmit pathogens, so North Carolina sanitation rules require standard precautions: stop the service, glove up, care for the injury, and then clean and disinfect every contaminated surface and reusable tool while discarding any single-use items that touched blood. Shared towels and ignoring exposure both create a real infection risk.

Why do North Carolina sanitation rules require foot spas and whirlpool basins to be cleaned and disinfected after each client?

• a.Only to keep the basin looking shiny for the next client
• b.Because the manufacturer's warranty demands it
• c.Because residue and warm water can harbor bacteria that cause skin infections if the basin is not disinfected✓
• d.It is optional as long as the water is changed

Foot spas trap skin, oils, and debris where bacteria such as those causing serious skin infections can grow, so North Carolina rules require cleaning and disinfecting the basin (including filters and jets) after every client and on a periodic deeper schedule. This is a public-health requirement, not a cosmetic or warranty preference, and skipping it has caused documented outbreaks of infection.