Rita Klabacha, PA-C

Specialties

Orthopedics

Education:

University of Washington Medical School MEDEX PA Program

Biography

Rita grew up in Palm Springs, CA and attended UC San Diego where she earned her B.A. After graduation she worked for Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) as a Staff Research Assistant managing oceanographic research studies in Portugal. After returning home to San Diego and while continuing to work for SIO she earned a Master’s of Science Degree in Exercise Physiology at San Diego State University. Her exposure to the Eastern Sierra during that time mostly involved ski trips to Mammoth. She ultimately took a leap of faith and moved to Bishop in 2004. She subsequently began working at Mammoth Hospital as a Physical Therapy Aide and as the Exercise Physiologist running the Human Performance Lab.

She relocated to the Pacific Northwest in 2012 to pursue her Master’s of Clinical Health Science as a PA through the MEDEX program at the University of Washington Medical School. She was grateful to be able to return to the Eastern Sierra in 2014 to serve both the Mammoth and Bishop communities as a Primary Care Physician Assistant, and she is now excited to join Mammoth Orthopedic Institute as an Orthopedic specialty PA.

In her free time she enjoys trail running, backpacking, growing vegetables, and a (very) occasional triathlon.