Sonja Fauchet, Physician Assistant

Sonja Fauchet is a Physician Assistant the Valley View’s Heart & Vascular Center. She attended the University of Wyoming as well as the University of Colorado School of Medicine, where she attained her Master of Physician Assistant Studies in 2013.

Sonja and her family moved to the Roaring Fork Valley from Denver in 2019, and she currently lives in Glenwood Springs with her husband (who is also a doctor at Valley View) and their three-year-old son. “I grew up in Wyoming, so living in a small community like ours is very comforting to me,” she says. “We worked at University of Colorado Hospital for 3 years and learned a lot doing that. But being back in a more intimate community feels right, and we’re so glad to be here, enjoying this valley.”

Throughout her career, prevention has always been one of Sonja’s biggest passions. During her time at Vail Health, she created a diabetes and heart disease prevention program for local residents, looking at risk factors and lifestyle in order to prevent and control heart problems. “We focused on underserved populations, mostly the Latino community,” she says. “Prevention and mitigation of risk is a huge part of managing heart disease, both before and after heart disease develops. Discussing healthy lifestyle options with my patients is still a big part of what I do.”

“I love talking with patients, educating them, deciding how we can manage their conditions together,” she continues. “Whether they’re high-level athletes or simply people looking to improve their lives, I enjoy meeting them where they are and helping them achieve their goals. Lifestyle, medication, medical devices—there’s a lot of different ways to get people well, and I love navigating those pathways with my patients.”

Sonja’s other major professional interest? Cardiac device management! “Pacemakers, defibrillators, and cardiac resynchronization devices are a niche specialty that I have had the privilege of learning how to program,” she says. “I love to be able to explain how a patient’s cardiac device works for them, and to make changes that are needed to optimize their heart function and improve their activity level, whether they are high-level athletes, or just looking to improve their quality of life by increasing physical activity.”