Julie Gunther, MD
Dr. Julie Gunther is a Board Certified Family Physician. She founded sparkMD in 2013 to take back her relationship with her patients and to empower herself to be the doctor she set out to be.
Dr. Julie has worked to build a robust, compassionate, diligent and capable team and shares sparkMD with three dedicated nurses, a physician partner (Dr. Tara) and an in-house aesthetician.
It is the mission of everyone at sparkMD to restore the integrity of healthcare through dignified, transparent care that is given the time and space it needs to be done right.
Dr. Julie is a graduate of Boise High School, Harvard University, and the University of Washington School of Medicine. She has spoken, provided content or been featured in Forbes, NPR, Bloomberg News, Medical Economics, Physician Practice, Reason TV, KevinMD, The Idaho Statesman, The Idaho Business Review, Greenbelt Magazine among many other forums.
She enjoys motivational speaking, telling authentic stories and empowering physicians and individuals to think differently about how we care for ourselves and for each other. Dr. Julie is married to her college sweetheart, Jeremy. She is a mom of two girls, a breast-cancer survivor and long-since-retired former college athlete. She can be reached at drg@sparkmd.com.
Tara Erbele, MD
Dr. Tara Erbele is a Board Certified Family Physician and entrepreneur who is passionate about changing people’s lives for the better. Dr. Tara and Dr. Julie joined forces in the spring of 2022 and are blending their direct primary care practices to create a physician-driven concierge medicine offering in the Treasure Valley.
With knowledge in urgent care, comprehensive wellness care, inpatient care, prenatal care, women’s health and travel medicine, Dr. Tara *also* has specialty training in functional medicine through The Cleveland Clinic Institute of Functional Medicine. She loves cooking, nutritious food, gardening and has in-depth knowledge of elite wellness through her own experience as a body-builder. Dr. Tara brings expansive abilities, dedication and passion for problem-solving to the sparkMD team.
Dr. Tara grew up in California and earned her medical degree at Albany Medical College in New York. Her rigorous family medicine training was completed at the Family Medicine Residency of Idaho. Dr. Tara will tell you: “my passion is my patients. I want each person to have their own best health.” She loves to travel and stays active hiking, snowshoeing, camping and adventuring with her husband and two children in the wilds of Idaho and beyond. She is the proud owner of an accidental urban farm and tends to chickens, bunnies, a cat, honey bees and the family Chocolate Lab, “Bo”.
In addition to personalized one-on-one care, Dr. Tara leads group classes focused on wellness topics including cardiac health, exercise, adolescent wellness and more. You can reach Dr. Tara at drtara@sparkmd.com.
Tanya Kowitz, MA-C
Ms. Tanya Kowitz, MA-C is a certified medical assistant who has been working in healthcare for almost 30 years. She is an Idaho native and has been a medical assistant to rural and ‘big city’ primary care physicians. Tanya is exceptionally bright, organized, well versed in all-things healthcare and has keen insight into patients’ clinical condition. With her experience, know-how and instinct she runs the ‘front-line’ of sparkMD.
Tanya and Dr. Julie have worked together since 2009. From 2010-2012, Dr. Julie and Tanya spent sixteen months running an onsite-employer clinic once weekly. This ‘micro-practice’ was the impetus for their understanding that together they could start, build and grow a clinic. When Dr. Gunther founded sparkMD in 2013 there was no question as to who she wanted for her right hand partner.
Tanya serves sparkMD as Head of Clinical Operations. She manages scheduling, resources, the in-house pharmacy, most billing and the patient-provider interface. She states, “I love working in the medical field because I like to help take care of people, to help them feel better and improve their quality of life.” When Tanya’s not working, she can be found at sporting events with her daughters, at the horse races or working on home improvement projects.
Andrea Berry, MA-C
Ms. Andrea Berry, MA-C is a certified medical assistant. She was born in Boise and raised in Glenns Ferry, Idaho. Andrea joined sparkMD as our second nursing provider. She brings a compassionate practicality and mind for wellness to the sparkMD team.
Andrea manages many tasks at sparkMD including phone services, medication refills, nursing services and is an amazing phlebotomist. She has been a medical assistant since 2016, a mom since 2005 and with sparkMD since 2017. When she is not triaging calls and making the behind-the-scenes at sparkMD work well, Andrea can be found camping, reading, hiking or taking care of any type of animal. She recently rescued a dog, “Leo” and has had guinea pigs, rabbits and would be uniquely suited to run her own petting zoo.
Andrea has a big heart for caring for all living things particularly animals, the plants that Dr. Julie neglects, and people who need their blood drawn. She is a mom of two amazing, creative kids, an early riser and sparkMD’s lone vegetarian.