When Dr. Anthony Cimmino was growing up in the heart of New York City, he never could’ve imagined that life would take him to a rural southwest Georgia town. However, that is exactly where he finds himself today – living in Moultrie, where he trains as a resident in the inaugural class of the Georgia South Psychiatry Residency Program. When asked why he wanted to pursue a career in healthcare, Cimmino said that his “passion for science and love of helping people” drove him towards that field.
Cimmino attended Ramapo College of New Jersey where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in communications and Walden University in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he earned a Master of Business Administration degree. He then went on to complete his medical degree at Trinity School of Medicine in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
During medical school, Cimmino decided that psychiatry was the specialty he wanted to pursue mainly because he wanted to have a direct impact on the mental wellness of his patients.
“Helping patients improve their quality of life by improving their mental health is a privilege that is most fulfilling,” said Cimmino. “In addition, the way our physiology and environment come together to dictate our behavior fascinates me.”
After deciding on psychiatry, it soon became time to choose a residency program to attend. Cimmino was looking for community, a place he would have the opportunity to not only grow his skillset, but also his relationships. And that is exactly what he found at Georgia South.
“I wanted to join a residency program where I would be exposed to a wide variety of patients,” said Cimmino. “I also greatly value the benefit of being educated by a faculty that has an affinity for teaching. Most importantly, though, I knew I wanted to be part of a program that was a close-knit family. Georgia South has afforded me all these opportunities. Immediately after interviewing with the team, I knew Georgia South was where I wanted to be.”
Georgia South welcomed its first class of residents to its psychiatry residency program in June 2022, and Cimmino was proud to be part of it. Joining a new program can be daunting, but he has nothing but confidence that Georgia South is training him to be the best physician possible and setting him up for future success.
“I have never felt more at home than I do at Georgia South,” said Cimmino. “We care for a diversified patient population, which allows us residents to experience a multitude of disease processes. The exposure we are getting is vast and provides more than enough experience for wherever we choose to practice in the future.”
Cimmino’s long-term goals post-residency involve staying in the area to continue practicing psychiatry. He has several passions and areas of interest that he would also like to explore.
“After residency, I plan to continue providing care for this wonderful community that has welcomed me so warmly,” said Cimmino. “In addition to addiction and geriatric psychiatry, I have a great interest in the benefits of TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) for patients who suffer from long-term depression and anxiety.”
Although he has only been in residency for five months, he has already made many wonderful memories with his colleagues and is looking forward to many more. A particular moment that stands out is from their new resident bonding retreat.
“We recently had a day at the YMCA where all the residents and some of the faculty spent the day on an obstacle course where we problem solved, shared laughs, and even zip lined,” said Cimmino. “It was a beautiful day and we all had a great time.”
When not in the clinic, Cimmino may be found enjoying comedy and improv, quantum physics and cosmology, swimming, cooking, sky diving or composing music. A fun fact about him is that before attending medical school, he was the guitarist/backing vocalist for a touring female fronted rock/punk band.
