Julie Sumski, MD

My name is Julie Sumski, MD, and I’m a PGY-1 psychiatry resident at LVHN, currently on the inpatient adult psychiatry rotation. I like to start my days early, usually around 5:30 a.m., with a cup of coffee and either a walk by the river in Easton or a quick workout at home. It’s a short 20-minute drive to the hospital.

I try to arrive by 7 a.m. and join my co-residents in the resident lounge. I review my list of patients for the day – some I’ve been following for a few days, while others are new admissions I’ll be meeting for the first time. By 8 a.m., I’m on the unit checking in with nursing and then seeing all of my patients. I also use this time to meet with the medical students on our team to review their presentations, discuss their patients and answer questions. After that, I meet with my attending to discuss each case and see patients together. During the morning, we also participate in collaborative treatment rounds where the full interdisciplinary team, including nursing and case management, shares updates for each patient. It’s a truly team-based process that enables us to develop comprehensive care plans tailored to each patient’s needs.

After rounds, I usually grab lunch and catch up with my co-residents. The rest of the afternoon is spent writing notes, calling family members with updates, reaching out to outside providers for collateral, and, on some days, leading patient groups. I enjoy facilitating these sessions that often focus on diagnoses and medication management. If there were new admissions earlier in the day, I would review their charts and see those patients in the afternoon as well.

Wednesday afternoons are protected didactic time with my co-residents. This gives us a chance to step away from our clinical work and learn about topics ranging from psychopharmacology to psychotherapy techniques. We have a mix of lectures, board review and group supervision, where we meet with our program director to share and discuss clinical cases with our colleagues.

My day usually ends around 5 p.m. after wrapping up my notes and any remaining tasks. In the evenings, I like to unwind with a good book or bake a sweet treat to bring in for the nurses or my co-residents. I’m currently experimenting with my brownie recipe! On weekends off, I explore the Lehigh Valley at local cafes, parks or events, or I head back to New Jersey to visit friends and family.