Meet Madison Nieberlein, PA-C | Plastic Surgery Physician Assistant & Advanced Aesthetic Injector

We had the good fortune of connecting with Madison Nieberlein, PA-C and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Madison, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I wanted to create a concept that was organically my own in that it had the building blocks of the education I’ve had throughout my medical training. Aesthetics and injectables have become so popular and oversaturated it is hard to distinguish and differentiate yourself among the masses, especially in Houston. I wanted to create something that was centered around the principles of plastic surgery and create a concept that prioritizes safety and ethics, all the while creating natural-looking outcomes with our aesthetic treatments.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I describe what I do as medical art, or some like to call this “needle art.” Always being a creative in my childhood, I have paintings in every garage, my parents’ homes, and even paintings I’ve sold to the public in the past. Besides being a Division I athlete at Tulane University playing volleyball, I began classes to start a minor in art. I didn’t know it was possible to blend art and medical knowledge until I found the field of plastic surgery in PA school on accident. The first surgery I ever scrubbed into was a DIEP flap, a breast cancer reconstruction surgery, where we take the tummy tissue and its artery and vein supply along with it, and literally sew it microscopically into an artery and vein from the chest to make a new breast. This was so fascinating to me that you could create something out of tissue somewhere else in the body, all the while being creative and eliciting immediate change with my own hands. At that point, conventional medicine then almost bored me after I realized I could operate, sew, and cut with the supervision of the surgeon in the operating room and help change people’s bodies for the better in real time. Learning this skillset to be efficient in the operating room was not easy and very frustrating or years and still is. Although I am no longer in the operating room, I still use my tactile skillset with my hands to carefully administer safe treatments. I overcame challenges by asking the surgeon or scrub techs how I could improve and even practicing my skillsets at home. As a PA in plastic surgery, different from many other surgical fields, PAs do very complex sewing or complex closures, meaning we sew uniquely and in different layers to optimize soft tissue healing. Learning this took time and dedication. Lessons I’ve learned along the way were to not be afraid to ask questions. However in the OR, it is hard to know a good time when to ask those questions. I leaned on the residents very much during my training. When people hear Botox or filler, they think usually of overfilled celebrities. I hope to change that. With the background I’ve had, I hope to continue to show people that aesthetics can be safe, effective and beautiful if the right person administers your treatment and that education of the provider matters.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m not originally from Houston so this is probably tougher to answer for me. My mom is my best friend and she came to visit me last week for a belated Mother’s Day trip. I took her to Lombardi Italian Cuisine in Uptown Park and the Post Oak Hotel for a spa day. For a cocktail, I love Clarkwood for a creative relaxing vibe. I enjoy golfing so the Memorial Park golf course is fun, or even a jog on the trail is enjoyable if the weather isn’t too hot.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Many are unfamiliar with the title or position of a physician assistant or physician associate (PA-C). In certain states, the role is designed to supplement the role of the physician ie doctor to extend the reach of health care in various fields of medicine. Similar to a nurse practitioner in the state of Texas, physician assistants (PA-C) can prescribe medicine and in some states even practice medicine independently. As a plastic surgery PA-C my skillset has been entirely dependent on the surgeons that have trained me throughout my career in the field. Many believe plastic surgery to be aesthetic or cosmetic enhancements only, and forget that plastic surgery was created initially to help those who are in need of reconstruction of their face or body, whether the incident came from trauma, cancer, or congenital abnormalities. My background in becoming a PA-C centered around reconstruction and in the operating room, I had amazing surgeons and residents pave the way for me to understand the body at a deeper level, especially blood supply and soft tissue. Without these surgeons I would not have the confidence to do what I do today. Many aesthetic injectors do not have this background and I describe it to my patients as being able to see inside-out. The in-depth knowledge allows me to provide safer and more effective treatments, and therefore I am so grateful to the surgeons that took the time to educate me throughout my career thus far.

Website: https://Www.plastikosaesthetics.com

Instagram: Theplasticinjector

Yelp: Plastikos Aesthetics