She mentors budding professionals. She makes space for new ideas. She cultivates a sense of belonging. She trains the next generation of practitioners. She embodies the values of patient safety and commitment to best practices. She mindfully embraces change to move the profession forward. She tirelessly upholds and elevates the standard of care to put her patients first. She takes charge and leads with resilience and grace. She strengthens her community with her true passion for the profession.

She is a Distinguished Woman in Medical Aesthetics.

Who inspires you? Nominate a Distinguished Woman whose dedication to excellence is making her team, her practice and the wider community of medical spa professionals stronger.

It’s well established that medical aesthetics is a profession that caters primarily to women. Aesthetic patients were 89% women in 2024, according to AmSpa’s 2024 Medical Spa State of the Industry Report. The same survey projected that, on average, 69% of medical spas are owned or majority-owned by women. That is exceptional and a shining example of women carving their space in a business world where women are still underrepresented at the top.

AmSpa celebrates the women paving the way in medical aesthetics by bringing awareness to the remarkable achievements of women across the nation. Not just the women with the largest social media followings or top billing, but the women who have laid the foundation for the aesthetics space; women whose business leadership or clinical excellence makes a positive impact; women who continue to innovate and advocate for safe, responsible med spa practices; women who build dynamic practices with a positive, inclusive culture; and women who elevate those around them through training, mentorship and collaboration. In short, women who go above and beyond to set high standards and foster growth within the medical aesthetics industry.

Two years ago, AmSpa first introduced this recognition, naming women whose mix of entrepreneurial, clinical and cultural impact move the industry forward. The inaugural cohort, the Distinguished Women in Medical Aesthetics of 2023, included:

• Erika Barry, NP-C, MSN, Moksha Aesthetics (Potomac, Maryland)
• Sarah Berg, DNP, FNP-C, Bespoke Beauty (Missoula, Montana)
• Nicole Chiaramonte, Advanced MedAesthetic Partners (Dallas)
• Shawna Chrisman, NP, Destination Aesthetics (Northern California)
• Alexa Nicholls Costa, NP, and Alexandra Rogers, NP, LexRx (Boston)
• Cary Deuber, CRNFA, CANS, Lemmon Avenue Plastic Surgery & Laser Center (Atlanta and Dallas)
• Kay Durairaj, MD, Beauty by Dr. Kay (Pasadena, California)
• Kimberly Evans, MD, FACOG, Sugar Land Med Spa (Sugar Land, Texas)
• Gretchen Frieling, MD, GFaceMD (Wellesley, Massachusetts)
• Ann Frossard, SkinSpirit (Nationwide)
• Meredith Harris, MS, WHNP, New Life Aesthetics (Raleigh, North Carolina)
• Lynn Heublein, SkinSpirit (Nationwide)
• Amanda Holden, MD, Holden Timeless Beauty (San Diego)
• Julie Bass Kaplan, FNP-BC, Disappearing Act Medical Aesthetics (Redding, California)
• Maegen Kennedy, MMS, PA-C, Windermere Dental and Medical Spa (Orlando)
• Rana Kennelly, BSN, BCS, The Confidence Bar (Chicago)
• Brianna LaTorre, MS, APRN, The Lip Bunny Beauty (Fall River, Massachusetts)
• Vanessa Lee, RN, The Things We Do (California)
• Nicci Levy, Alchemy 43 (Nationwide)
• Nicola Lowrey, PA-C, N2 Aesthetics (Manhattan Beach, California)
• Lauren Olson, PA-C, Radiance Medical Aesthetics & Wellness (Woodlands, Texas)
• Marria Pooya, Greenwich Medical Spa (Connecticut, New York and New Jersey)
• Linette Rivera, MD, Glanz Aesthetics (Doral, Florida)
• Neekan Rivera, PA-C, Aere Aesthetics (Beverly Hills, California)
• Sarah Safa, PA-C, Refined Aesthetics (Leesburg, Virginia)
• Rahi Sarbaziha, MD, Integrative Aesthetics (Beverly Hills, California)
• Taylor Siemens, NP-C, Vitalyc Medspa and My Aesthetic Training (Dallas)
• La-Tasha Walker, RN, La-Mon’e Aesthetics (Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania)
• Hermine Warren, DNP, APRN, CANS, ISPAN-F, CNM, Facialogy (Encino, California)
• Limor Weinberg, FNP-BC, The Clinic USA (Miami)

“Women leaders have their own set of unique needs and, as an industry made up of majority female professionals and serving majority female patients, it's time we focus on meeting these needs, which was the impetus behind the Women in Aesthetic Leadership Conference (WALC),” says AmSpa President and CSO, Cathy Christensen. “As part of this, we felt WALC was the perfect time to launch our Distinguished Women in Medical Aesthetics initiative, which acknowledges and recognizes the talents, technique, business acumen and contributions of 30 women in the industry who have gone above and beyond in medical aesthetics.”

That tradition of recognizing excellence continues, with the 2023 Distinguished Women weighing in on the selection of 25 exceptional ladies who will be announced this summer. Later this fall, these inspiring women will come together in celebration with an awards ceremony at the Women in Aesthetics Leadership Conference (WALC), October 3 – 5, 2025, at Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

The nomination period for Distinguished Women in Medical Aesthetics 2025 runs from April 11 to June 10, 2025. Take this opportunity to recognize the women making a difference in the aesthetic community when you submit your entry at americanmedspa.org/distinguishedwomen.