Dannica Ballard, DO

Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences

Dr. Dannica Ballard was raised on a cattle and timber ranch in northwestern Oregon. She grew up riding horses, stacking firewood, working cattle, running equipment during haying season, and showing an array of animals in 4-H. Her upbringing fueled her curiosity of living systems and later inspired her passion for serving others through rural medicine.

Dannica has had the dream of becoming a physician since she was 16 years old. She attended undergrad at George Fox University in Newberg, OR and studied biology while pursuing the pre-med route. After college, she spent several years working at a retirement facility as a caregiver and eventually a Resident Care Manager. She gained valuable experience in healthcare management, as well as hospice care and developed a deep appreciation for caring for the elderly.

She met her husband Kyle during this time and they married the summer prior to her beginning medical school at Pacific Northwest University in Yakima, WA. They spent the first two years of Dannica’s medical school education in Yakima before moving to the Treasure Valley to complete the clinical portion of her training. She and her husband bought a now 110 year old home in Nampa, ID and have since gotten very attached to their humble abode and living in Idaho. They have especially been grateful to trade in all the rain from northwestern Oregon for all the sunshine that southeastern Idaho has to offer! They are so thankful that Dannica matched into the Full Circle Health Caldwell Residency Program, especially because they get to stay in their beloved home and for Dannica to continue to serve in Caldwell and the surrounding communities with a medical family she has already grown quite fond of through her medical school rotations.

Dannica’s clinical interests include rural medicine, gastrointestinal health, endoscopy, dermatology, mental health, and expanding access to equitable healthcare for marginalized populations. In her free time, Dannica enjoys hiking, running, cake-baking, birding, reading, fixing up their old home, playing with her hamster Hanta, and spending time with her husband and friends.