BY KAREN BOSSICK AND JOY PRUDEK
A Wood River Valley native is one of two doctors who recently joined St. Luke’s Wood River Emergency Department.
Dr. Autumn Loomis and Dr. Jennie Hooper are the new faces in the E.R.
Loomis was born and raised in Hailey, graduating from Wood River High School in 1998. She got her undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan where she studied microbiology. She became interested in medicine after traveling overseas where she saw the impact of untreated diseases.
“I wanted to be able to continue the science aspect while having a direct, personal impact on peoples' lives. While I loved all my rotations in medical school, I quickly realized that in emergency medicine, we have the opportunity to take care of everyone and everything,” she said.
Loomis attended medical school in San Antonio, Texas. She completed her residency in Louisville, Ky. Since, she has worked in numerous locations, including New Zealand and Boston.
Loomis is excited that she and her husband James have been able to make their home in the Wood River Valley, noting that the Emergency Department doesn’t often have openings.
“Even after living in multiple places, I have always considered the Wood River Valley home and knew I wanted to move back one day. Most of my family is still in Idaho so being closer to them is wonderful,” she said. “The valley has definitely grown a lot but has still kept the small-town feel. I love encountering people I know, or even patients I treated in the ED, at the post office, grocery store or out on the trails. This closeness is something I greatly missed after moving away. It's just such a nice community feel here.”
Hooper grew up in Los Angeles but has called San Diego, Washington, D.C., Charleston, S.C., and Fort Collins, Colo., home. She found her way to the Wood River Valley through one of her two sisters, who lives in Hailey.
“I have been coming to the Sun Valley area for over 40 years and one of my life goals was to become a permanent resident. I love the outdoors, the culture, the people! My sister and father moved here a few years ago and it is great to be close to family again after so long,” she said.
Coming from a family of lawyers, she is an anomaly as a doctor.
She received her Bachelor of Science in Cognitive Science with a concentration in Neuroscience from University of California-San Diego. She earned her medical degree at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and completed her internship and residency at Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
She is particularly interested in Wilderness Medicine and Pre-Hospital/Emergency Services, as well as Teaching and Academics.
“St. Luke's is a great organization and Wood River feels like a big family,” she said. “I love being able to take care of patients of all ages and I love the variety of what I see and do every day.”
Loomis concurred: “I am enjoying working with such an amazing ED group and there’s terrific collaboration amongst the entire medical staff as well. After being at a very busy and large community hospital outside of Boston, St. Luke’s Wood River is a nice change of pace. While our shifts can be just as busy, being able to sit down with patients and dedicate more time to each visit is very rewarding. I also appreciate the fantastic resources the hospital has as a critical access hospital, as well as the amazing community support.”