About

Dr. Jerome Peltier was a Louisiana physician whose career spanned rural family medicine and the rise of modern emergency care. He is known as a dedicated healer, hospital leader, and one of the doctors who helped establish 24-hour emergency room coverage in the capital city.

By the 1960s, Dr. Peltier was the community physician for Pierre Part and Belle Rose, small bayou towns where access to care was limited. Families sometimes traveled by boat to reach his office, where he worked alongside his nurse, Ms. Helen. Many patients spoke Cajun French, and children often translated between languages.

In 1973, Dr. Peltier shifted toward the emerging field of emergency medicine. He became a founding partner of the Emergency Physicians Association (EPA), a group of doctors who brought structured, around-the-clock coverage to hospitals. His work, alongside colleagues like Dr. Roland Louque and Dr. Roy Folse, helped professionalize a specialty that was only beginning to take shape nationwide.

Later in his career, Dr. Peltier was remembered for his leadership and mentorship of younger physicians. Married to Mary Elizabeth Rainey Peltier, he raised a family while devoting his life to medicine. Remembered both as the bayou doctor who cared for French-speaking families and as a pioneer of organized emergency services, Dr. Peltier left a lasting mark on Louisiana healthcare.

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