Dr. Ritvo is vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and the chair of the Department of Psychiatry. She is an Associate Professor in both the Departments of Psychiatry with a secondary appointment in the Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine. Dr. Ritvo is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a member of the American College of Psychiatry.

Dr. Ritvo has written and lectured extensively in the US, and internationally to dermatologists, plastic and cosmetic surgeons as well as psychiatrists on the “Science and Meaning of Beauty” as well as “How to understand and handle aesthetic patients”. Dr Ritvo has written book chapters and articles on topics that include body dysmorphic disorder, and managing patient expectations. She and her best friend in medical school, Dr. Debra Luftman, co-authored a book called The Beauty Prescription.

Dr. Ritvo completed her residency training at New York Hospital Payne Whitney Clinic/ Cornell and received undergraduate and medical degrees from University of California, Los Angeles. In addition to her expertise in the science of beauty, she is considered an expert in family therapy and is the lead author of the Concise Guide to Marital and Family Therapy and has written the chapters on Family and Couples Therapy for the leading psychiatric textbooks. She is an experienced psychotherapist treating patients with anxiety, depression, and relationship issues among other psychiatric matters.