A Week in the Life (Lizbeth Leapo, MD) | Duke Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences

A Typical Week for a First-Year Psychiatry Resident

Dr. Leapo sometimes plays pickleball with co-residents.

Morning: I’m rotating at the Durham Veteran’s Affairs hospital this week! I usually get to work at around 7:15am so I have enough time to look through any new patients from the weekend. I’ll preround on a few patients and talk through plans with my attending before the morning meeting at 9am, where we discuss the patients with a full team of case managers, nurses, occupational therapists, dieticians, other attendings, and residents. After that, I finish rounding on the rest of my patients and get started on notes.
Afternoon: I try to catch the med-psych noon conference during lunch—they always have really interesting case discussions! I use the time in the afternoon to go back and have some longer conversations with patients, check in with their families, finish up notes, and see any new admissions. After all the work for the day is done, I’ll usually sign out to the night coverage at 4:30-5pm and head home!
Evening: I’ll go for a quick run if the weather’s nice, then grab dinner and wind down by watching some TV.

Taco Tuesday with co-residents at Fonda Lupita!

Morning: My morning routine is pretty similar most days. At 9:15am, we have a brief meeting with case managers to discuss any discharges for the day.
Afternoon: Tuesdays we have our Academic Half-Day, so I head over between 12-1pm for lunch and didactics. It’s my favorite part of the week because I get to see my co-residents on other rotations. We’ve had some great recent lectures about psychotherapy in acute care settings and how to choose medications.
Evening: Post-didactic happy hour or dinner with co-residents!

Morning: Morning routine as usual with a team meeting between 9-9:30am, where we discuss each patient in a little bit more detail with the interdisciplinary team.
Afternoon: Journal club at 1:15, led by our VA chief resident, Chris! This has been a great opportunity to discuss articles with other residents and attendings. This month, we’ve focused on studies related to treatments for bipolar disorder.
Evening: At least once a week, I try to get out to play pickleball! We have a pretty big resident pickleball group and plenty of local courts nearby!

Morning: Morning rounds and notes. On Thursdays, we usually have a little bit of extra time for teaching, so I’ll check in with the medical student on service to see if they have any topics of interest to discuss further with the attending!
Afternoon/evening: Psychiatry Grand Rounds are at 12, featuring excellent speakers from institutions around the country! After finishing up notes and checking in on patients, I’ll head home around 5. Make some dinner, run some errands, call family, and recharge.

Morning: Get to work around 7:30am, see some patients before interdisciplinary team meeting at 9am (on Friday, there are donuts!)
Afternoon: At noon, we have a meeting to talk through clinically or ethically challenging cases with our VA chief, co-residents, and attendings. I’ve learned so much from these discussions; it’s always helpful to have new insight on complex cases. After, I’ll make sure everything is updated for weekend coverage and sign out around 4:30-5pm.
Evening: I love to dance, and I’ve been trying to catch a dance class at least once or twice a month. LA Dance and DIA are two studios nearby with classes in different dance styles!

Duke Psychiatry residents at the Durham Farmers' Market

Morning: I live downtown, so my favorite thing to do on Saturday morning is to check out the Durham Farmer’s Market. They have an awesome art market and live music.
Afternoon/Evening: There’s plenty to do in Durham on the weekend! I might grab lunch with co-residents or check out a trail at the Eno River or American Tobacco Campus. If you’re looking to see a show or concert, the Durham Performing Arts Center and Cat’s Cradle are great venues!

Sunday’s my day to reset for the week! I take some time to exercise, clean, and catch up with friends and family.

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