By SARAH GILLETTE, Community Outreach Coordinator
photos by: JODIE BRIM CREATIVE
This year marks a milestone birthday for Lewisville Laser & Aesthetics! The medical aesthetic practice, owned and operated by Dr. Leigh Ringer Summer, turns 18 in October, a fact which has Dr. Summer feeling both profoundly grateful and a bit nostalgic.
“It’s hard to believe our practice is officially an adult this year!” Dr. Summer shares. “What a joy it’s been to be a part of this community for almost two decades, and to have established lasting relationships with our patients built on trust and excellence.”
After working in private practice as a family physician for over a decade, Dr. Summer began Lewisville Laser & Aesthetics as a natural outgrowth of holistic care for her patients.
“So many women had aesthetic concerns they wanted addressed but didn’t know where to go for clear direction and medically sound treatment,” she says. LLA was born out of Dr. Summer’s desire to provide aesthetic medicine services for her patients that were equal parts art, science, and commitment to an experience defined by excellence.
Thankfully, her longtime friend and coworker in private practice, Kristen Murphy, PA-C, shared that vision, and in the fall of 2008 the two began providing aesthetic services ranging from Botox, Dysport and injectable fillers, to laser skin rejuvenation and feminine wellness. Both Dr. Summer and Kristen feel their years practicing together — and successfully navigating an aesthetic industry that has exploded during that time — have given them a firm foundation for the future.
“We’ve made diversity of services offered and an optimal patient experience the bedrock of our practice,” says Kristen. “We’ve seen virtually every new device or pharmaceutical breakthrough for the last two decades, and we’ve built a suite of services comprised of the ones that actually deliver the results our patients are looking for.”
That means a current LLA patient has multiple energy-based, injectable, and topical treatment options that have been tested and approved by both Dr. Summer and her team to be safe, effective, and transformative.
“I believe patients choose our practice for a physician-led, comprehensive menu of treatment options,” Dr. Summer shares. “And with multiple options at our disposal, we can build a plan for your skin’s concerns based on the most successful outcome — not just on the one device or injectable we happen to have.”
LLA patients may also notice they see the same faces each time they come into the practice. That’s another place where Dr. Summer has intentionally focused her time and energy — building a team that loves what they do and shares her vision. She’s proud of building a staff that stands out for its longevity in working together, something not common in a field where high staff turnover is the norm.
“I have to hand it to my team — they’ve created an atmosphere that is serene, welcoming, and highly professional,” she says.
What else has 18 years working together in medical aesthetics taught the LLA team? Dr. Summer and Kristen agree that one size definitely does not fit all!
“Each of our patients is unique — age, skin type, genetics, sun exposure, lifestyle, aesthetic goals — and it’s incumbent upon us to create a plan of care that’s as unique they are,” Kristen explains. Customized care is a hallmark of the LLA experience and includes a wide variety of services offered by both injectors and the team’s two licensed aestheticians, Haley Vazquez and Krista Lunsford.
Dr. Summer also stresses the importance of continuous training on the nuances of aesthetics, particularly when it comes to injectables.
“At the end of the day, only an expert should ever come near your face with a needle!” Dr. Summer says. She and Kristen, along with Nurse Injectors Alisha Childress, RN, BSN, and Shelia Anderson, RN, prioritize continuous training with nationally and internationally recognized experts. Additionally, the LLA staff utilizes ultrasound imaging to assist with filler placement, as well as offering treatment with hylenex, an FDA-approved enzyme that dissolves injectable dermal fillers.
“Sometimes our patients love what we undo almost as much as what we do,” Dr. Summer explains, especially about hylenex, noting it enables patients who’ve had unfavorable filler results elsewhere to “reset” and then go forward with more modest treatment.
The practice always welcomes new patients and hosts an array of educational and social events online and in person, including an annual birthday bash in the fall that continues to be a client favorite. Visit them at 6580 Shallowford Road, Suite 130 in Lewisville, NC, or learn more and book online at lewisvillelaser.com.
