Ardmore, OK

April was born and raised in Southern Oklahoma and is a 2003 graduate of Ringling High School. After high school, she moved to Norman to attend the University of Oklahoma, where she was a member of the Gamma Phi Beta Sorority and a Student Athletic Trainer for the OU football team for 3 years. She graduated from OU with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology in 2008. She then went on to earn two more degrees, a Master’s Degree in Sports Administration from East Central University in 2010 and a Bachelor’s Degree in Dental Hygiene from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in 2013.

She practiced Dental Hygiene in Ardmore for almost 5 years before she decided to pursue a career in medicine. She knew she needed more of a challenge and also had a deep desire to care for people more completely. So, it was in 2018 that April entered the Master of Physician Assistant Studies Program at Oklahoma City University. She graduated from this program with High Honors in May of 2020.

She began practicing as a Family Medicine Physician Assistant in August of 2020 and loves being able to care for people right where she grew up! She has a heart for Family Medicine and considers it a blessing to be able to provide high-quality, thoughtful, comprehensive care to the people in this area. In particular, she enjoys building lasting relationships with her patients and their families, helping them achieve their health and wellness goals, and practicing preventive medicine.

She is incredibly excited about the opportunity to practice in a direct primary care model as this allows her to care for people even more completely, without the rush. It will also allow her to be more available to her patients, both of which is what she has always desired to do.

In her free time, you will find April spending time with her husband, her two boys and her parents. They all enjoy attending church, sports of any kind, card and board games, hiking and exploring, and experiencing all kinds of new things together.

Dr. Southward was born and raised in Southern Oklahoma on her family’s ranch. She attended Ringling High School and went on to complete her undergraduate degree at Oklahoma State University. She received her Doctorate of Medicine degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, where she graduated in the top quartile of her class. She completed her residency at Great Plains Family Medicine in Oklahoma City where she served as Chief Resident her final year. Upon graduation in 2003, she returned home to Ardmore, Oklahoma and opened her own private family medicine practice.

In 2012, she joined the staff of Cross Timbers Hospice and has since worked in both hospice and family practice serving Ardmore and the surrounding community’s. The decision to join Primary Health Partners will allow her to transition her practice to a direct primary care model which will allow her to spend more time with each patient to provide the quality, personalized care she is passionate about.

Her areas of clinical focus include family practice, geriatrics, hospice/end of life care, and chronic disease. She enjoys partnering with patients to educate them and help them to live a healthy lifestyle and prevent diseases. She believes that her patients can teach her more about medicine than any book ever has. She is a hands-on physician.

“Being a family medicine physician is my calling. I get the enjoyment of caring for my patients over time, from birth to geriatrics. It is a very rewarding experience.”

Dr. Southward is married to Kent, and together they are very proud of their four daughters. When she is home, she stays busy with family and enjoys cooking, traveling, outdoor sports and relaxing at the lake. She is a member of the Methodist Church in Ringling.