Operation Rescue demands immediate intervention from the New Mexico Board of Medical Examiners to stop shocking spate of life-threatening abortion injuries

Albuquerque, NM – Two 911 calls released today by Operation Rescue show life-threatening complications from late-term abortions that took place at Southwestern Women’s Options earlier this year. These are the fourth and fifth recordings of 911 calls released by Operation Rescue that originated from Albuquerque abortion clinics within a 15-month time span.
“These 911 recordings show that the lives of women are placed in extreme jeopardy at the shocking rate of one every three months. This presents an unacceptable risk to women and we demand that the New Mexico Board of Medical Examiners intervene in the interest of public safety,” said Cheryl Sullenger, Senior Policy Advisor for Operation Rescue.
Operation Rescue has filed complaints against abortionist Shelley Sella, Susan Robinson, and Curtis Boyd of Southwestern Women’s Options, for their parts in these horrific abortion injuries. [View Complaint]
In the emergency recordings released today, one 23-year old patient suffered “heavy hemorrhaging” after an abortion on February 19, 2011, and was transported to the hospital in the middle of the night to save her life.

The second recording released today was perhaps the most troubling. A woman in her twenties suffered a ruptured uterus during a “late-term” abortion. A ruptured uterus is a life-threatening condition that is considered a serious medical emergency that usually requires hysterectomy in order to prevent death. It is unknown if she survived her injury.
During that incident, which took place just two months ago on May 12, 2011, the woman who placed the 911 call from Southwestern Women’s Options seemed more concerned with the disruption of her clinic.
When the dispatcher asked if emergency responders should came to the front door the woman at the abortion clinic responded, “Yeah, that’s the only place they can come –um, and, you know, we have a waiting room full of people, so, and surgery going on so we’ll let them in. We’ll keep an eye out for them, okay?”
Earlier recordings revealed the following life-threatening abortion complications:

  • A 30-year old woman who suffered “uterine bleeding”, a sign of a possible punctured womb, after a first trimester abortion.
  • A 17-year old girl who suffered from a fever, a possible sign of infection, a rapid pulse, and uncontrolled bleeding after a second trimester abortion.
  • A 35-year old woman, who at one point had stopped breathing, could be heard on the recording groaning and struggling for life.
  • “There is an abortion injury crisis in Albuquerque that must be immediately addressed,” said Sullenger. “With virtually no accountability, the abortion clinics in New Mexico pose a huge public danger. It’s been about two and a half months since the last known abortion emergency. Women walking to Albuquerque abortion mills today are playing Russian Roulette with their lives.”
    All 5 Written Transcripts & Video Links:

    SWO Feb. 10, 2010 (video)
    SWO Nov. 3, 2010 (video)
    UNMCRH Feb. 15, 2011 (video)
    SWO Feb. 19, 2011 (video)
    SWO May 11, 2011 (video)