New Mexico abortion facility mad about release of 911 call from botched abortion

by Kathleen Gilbert

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (LifeSiteNews.com) - The release of a 911 tape in which a woman is overheard fighting for life after a botched abortion has angered the facility where the abortion took place.

In a letter to the editor of the New Mexico Daily Lobo, UNM Executive Director of Communications Billy Sparks said the abortion-providing center offers gynecological procedures “in a safe and supportive environment.”

“It is unfortunate that organizations use situations without knowing the facts, especially when discussion and public disclosure may violate the right of all patients to maintain the confidentiality of their medical information,” he wrote.

In the tape, voices can be heard attempting to rouse the woman, who audibly gasps for breath as the caller describes her “grayish” color before she becomes “not responsive at all.” The woman’s age and first name are mentioned.

UNM Center for Reproductive Health abortionist Tony Ogburn also criticized Defending Life, the pro-life group that published the recording and recently opened a pregnancy resource center across the street from the abortion site.

“What they have is not a medical clinic, and they have no licensed health care professionals,” Ogburn told the Lobo. “They have an agenda, and their goal is not to provide legal healthcare.”

Ogburn and another UNM spokesperson told the paper that the patient in the 911 call was not transported to the hospital and was released that day, but would not disclose why the patient was in distress. “People don’t need to know,” said Ogburn.

Operation Rescue Senior Policy Advisor Cheryl Sullenger questioned UNM officials for their backlash in the media.

“It is more likely that they are upset that we found out about this life-threatening abortion complication than they are about patient privacy,” she said.

“The incident raises standard of care issues at UNMCRH and brings attention to the fact that the University of New Mexico, a publicly funded institution, is up to their ears in the abortion business training UNM students and profiting from the taking of innocent human life through abortion.”

New Mexico has virtually no health and safety standards for abortion facilities, something Operation Rescue says has helped cause an alarming number of emergency situations.

Four additional 911 calls from botched abortions were placed within a recent 15-month period from another abortion clinic in Albuquerque, revealing complications such as hemorrhaging and uterine rupture. At least one of those patients was transferred from the clinic, Southwestern Women’s Options, to UNM Hospital for emergency treatment.

“There is a move by abortionists to hide behind the privacy rights of their patients to cover up their own mistakes,” said Sullenger. “They don’t want anyone to know the truth about the real dangers women face during an abortion, especially in the later stages of pregnancy.”