Dr. Katie Snyder, who graduated from Madras High School in 1998 as Katie Marston, returns to her hometown as clinical medical director of Madras Mosaic Medical.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to contribute to leadership in health care because it’s important to be able to be involved in change, to advocate for my team and hopefully make changes for the better.”
Dr. Katie Snyder, Clinic Medical Director, Madras Mosaic Medical
Dr. Katie Snyder, who graduated from Madras High School in 1998 as Katie Marston, returns to her hometown as clinical medical director of Madras Mosaic Medical.
Dr. Snyder graduated from Madras High School as Katie Marston in 1998.
Pioneer file photo
“I’m excited about the opportunity to contribute to leadership in health care because it’s important to be able to be involved in change, to advocate for my team and hopefully make changes for the better.”
Dr. Katie Snyder, Clinic Medical Director, Madras Mosaic Medical
Dr. Katie Snyder, 42, now heads the Madras Mosaic Medical Clinic just steps away from the hospital where she was born in 1980.
“Being this close to the hospital will facilitate being with my patients when they’re in the hospital,” said Snyder, who specializes in obstetrics.
Twenty-five years have come and gone since then Katie Marston graduated from Madras High School in 1998. She attended Pacific University in Forest Grove with an interest in physical therapy. A couple of years out of college she decided to pursue medicine.
While she waited for acceptance into medical school, she worked for AmeriCore in Denver. There she engaged with people in the community, particularly homeless people, to connect them with health care. That experience shaped the trajectory of her future.
“I became a lot more aware of the need that was out there,” said Snyder. “It really drove that need home for me. I enjoy working with a wide range of people.”
In 2012, Snyder graduated from medical school at Penn State University on a Navy scholarship, then crisscrossed the country fulfilling her assignments.
Looking for a place to land permanently, Snyder knew she wanted to serve a rural community.
“I enjoy being in the outdoors. I enjoy the sunshine. I enjoy living around fewer people. I think small towns are the way to go,” said Snyder.
At a conference she heard about the perfect job in her hometown. She landed the position and Feb. 13 she started her new job in Madras.
Snyder, her husband and their dog are living with her parents while they search for a home.
“It’s definitely different. You definitely see places differently as an adult as you did when you were in high school,” Snyder observed. “I’m excited to see the revitalizing of the downtown area. I’m enjoying getting reconnected with my friends from high school.”
Beyond being home, Snyder recognizes rural communities like Madras historically are medically underserved. Jefferson County has some of the lowest health scores in the state. She appreciates the challenge.
“I want to be working in an area where I feel like I’m going to be able to make a difference,” she said. “When there’s a significant need, that gives a lot of potential for making a difference.”
Her position as clinic medical director magnifies that opportunity to make a difference.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to contribute to leadership in health care because it’s important to be able to be involved in change, to advocate for my team and hopefully make changes for the better,” she said.
Snyder likes the Mosaic model which wraps services like medical, behavioral health and pharmacy all under one roof and makes them available to people of all income levels on a sliding fee scale, for patients with or without insurance.
