Dr. Jerome E. Shapiro, a psychiatrist and retired Social Security Administration official who was a lifelong Baltimore resident, died of multiple myeloma yesterday at his Mount Washington home. He was 75. 

Dr. Shapiro attended City College and earned his undergraduate degree at the Johns Hopkins University in 1949. He graduated in 1954 from the University of Maryland School of Medicine. 

He was chief of Social Security's mental health branch in the Office of Disability from 1988 until his retirement in 2000. Previously, he had a private psychiatric practice and was a consultant for the Social Security Administration and the Methodist Board of Child Care. 

At work, Dr. Shapiro was known as an approachable man who always made time to talk with people and try to help them with their problems, said Dale Cox, deputy director of SSA's Office of Medical Policy. 

"He was a true gentleman," Mr. Cox said. "He was considerate of other people. It made it easy to work with him and a pleasure to be around him." 

He was a supporter of civil rights throughout his life, participating in efforts to integrate lunch counters in Baltimore. 

Dr. Shapiro had an interest in French language and culture and traveled to Europe and North Africa extensively when he was younger. During one of his trips to France, he met his wife, the former Monique Tassigny. They were married for 48 years. 

Dr. Shapiro was a member of the American Board of Psychology and Neurology and the American Psychiatric Association. 

Services are private. 

Surviving, in addition to his wife, are two daughters, Nancy Shapiro of Baltimore and Laura Shapiro of Saugerties, N.Y.; a brother, Morton Shapiro of Owings Mills; and three grandchildren.