Meet Laura Ortiz-Bernal, DNP, APN, FNP-C
Founder of L’Aura Aesthetics
I’m Dr. Laura Ortiz-Bernal — a Board-Certified Family Nurse Practitioner and Doctor of Nursing Practice with a strong foundation in emergency medicine, trauma, vascular, and family care.
My story began long before medicine. I came to the United States from Mexico at five years old, the daughter of hard-working immigrants who taught me resilience, faith, and the value of creating something from nothing. Everything I have today has been built from the ground up.
My healthcare journey began at seventeen, when I started working as a CNA in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Over the next decade, I built my career in the Emergency Department, caring for patients across every level of acuity — from minor injuries to critical trauma. During that time, I served as a Charge Nurse, Triage Nurse, and Nurse Preceptor, developed a passion for triage education, and was honored as Nurse of the Year for my dedication to patient care and leadership.
After earning my Doctor of Nursing Practice from Rutgers University, where I graduated with honors, received the Alpha Tau Research Award for my dissertation on vaping-related lung injuries, and earned multiple academic scholarships for merit and leadership, I advanced into the role of Nurse Practitioner in Emergency and Trauma Medicine. Those years strengthened my ability to think critically, perform under pressure, and deliver care when it matters most — skills that seamlessly translate into aesthetic medicine today.
Alongside my ER career, I spent three years in vascular surgery as a pre- and post-operative nurse, where I refined my procedural skill, attention to detail, and appreciation for surgical precision — all of which now shape my aesthetic approach.
In 2023, I transitioned into aesthetic medicine, combining my emergency-trained precision with a passion for helping people feel confident in their own skin. After working two years in aesthetics and across three medical spas, I decided to found my own practice in the summer of 2025 — and that’s how L’Aura Aesthetics was born: a boutique medical suite built on trust, integrity, and natural results.
My philosophy is simple: aesthetics is still medicine, and every treatment should be rooted in anatomy, safety, and evidence-based practice. I’ve trained extensively and am certified in injectables, dermal fillers, PDO threads, Sculptra, Morpheus8, and energy-based skin treatments, and I’m currently completing my Clinical Anatomy Certificate at Hardin-Simmons University with the goal of one day teaching human anatomy.
Beyond aesthetics, I’ve volunteered in Haiti and the U.S. Virgin Islands, providing medical care to underserved communities — experiences that continue to shape my compassion and perspective as a clinician.
Outside of medicine, I’m a new mom, an avid traveler, and someone who truly loves life, this planet, and good food. I believe confidence doesn’t come from perfection — it comes from feeling like yourself again.
I can’t wait to meet you.
