A different approach to feeling well.
Ginger Snyder, PA-C
Physician Assistant + Registered Dietitian
Medicine with a wider lens.
My career in healthcare began in 2002 as a registered dietitian, where I developed a deep appreciation for the relationship between nutrition, metabolism, and overall health. Over the years, that curiosity grew into something bigger: a desire to understand the human body more completely and to help people uncover the reasons they may not feel like themselves.
Today, as a physician assistant with a background in both nutrition and family medicine, I bring those perspectives together in my work with women. My approach to functional medicine is rooted in the belief that symptoms are information. They are an invitation to look deeper, ask better questions, and understand what may be happening beneath the surface.
My background as a registered dietitian and physician assistant allows me to bridge two worlds: the science and structure of conventional medicine with a broader, whole-person approach to health. I believe in using evidence-based medicine while also considering nutrition, lifestyle, metabolic health, hormones, and the individual circumstances that make every woman's story different.
A calling I almost didn't pursue.
My path to becoming a physician assistant was not a straight one. I was raising six children and living in rural Utah when I first began thinking seriously about pursuing graduate education as a PA. I wanted to become a provider, but with a young family and limited educational opportunities nearby, the idea felt nearly impossible. Eventually, I began to accept that perhaps it simply wasn't meant to happen.
Then life gave me an unexpected nudge. My husband was involved in a motorcycle accident and suffered a significant wrist injury that required surgery. At one of his follow-up appointments, we sat across from the physician assistant who was caring for him. As I watched, I remember thinking, I wish I were on the other side of this visit.
I left feeling unsettled. But when I really examined that feeling, I realized it wasn't frustration — it was jealousy. I wanted to be the provider. That realization reignited something I had almost allowed myself to abandon.
I began researching PA programs and discovered that a small number of hybrid programs existed. Of those, I was eligible for only one: the University of Wisconsin, which accepted a very limited number of rural students. I told my husband, "If I get in, it's meant to be." I completed my prerequisites, applied, and was accepted on my first attempt.
That decision changed the course of my life.
Caring for women through every season.
Since becoming a physician assistant, I have continued to fall more in love with medicine every day. For the past five years, I have practiced in family medicine, caring for patients across a broad spectrum of health concerns. I have also had the privilege of serving patients on the Navajo Nation, an experience that has profoundly shaped the way I think about healthcare and the importance of listening to each individual story.
While I value all aspects of medicine, my heart has always been in women's health. There is something uniquely powerful about caring for women as they move through the different seasons of life. From changes in energy, sleep, metabolism, and mood to the complex hormonal transitions that can accompany different stages of life, women are often told that what they are experiencing is simply something they have to accept. I don't believe that should be the end of the conversation.
I want women to understand their bodies, understand their options, and feel confident participating in decisions about their health. I don't believe healthcare should be about chasing symptoms one at a time. I believe it should be about stepping back, looking at the whole picture, and creating a thoughtful plan for the person sitting in front of me.
After all these years, I'm grateful that the dream I once thought wasn't possible became my calling. And now, I get to do what I had hoped for all those years ago: sit on the other side of the visit and help women feel better.
Outside of medicine, my favorite place to be is with my family. As a mother of six, family is at the center of my life. I also love being outdoors, hiking, exploring Utah, and listening to music. I feel incredibly fortunate to combine the things I care most deeply about — medicine, women's health, whole-body wellness, and helping people live better — with the life I've built with my family.
I believe women deserve to feel well, understand their health, and have a provider who takes the time to look at the whole picture.
