By Colleen Heild, Journal Investigative Reporter, Albuquerque Journal

The New Mexico Medical Board has agreed to investigate two Albuquerque clinics that perform abortions after receiving complaints based on 911 calls for emergency transports of clinic patients to hospitals.

Pro-life advocates, including the national Operation Rescue, sought the investigation and provided tapes of 13 calls, which date back to late November 2008.

Representatives for the clinics say the complaints to the board are nothing more than a national strategy of harassment by anti-abortion advocates.

Whether the 911 calls signify actual problems with physician care or treatment of patients will be up to the medical board to decide.

According to the 911 recordings, the patients had medical complications during or after abortions. Their symptoms included uncontrolled bleeding, a uterine rupture, seizures, trouble breathing and high fever and high heart rate.

The patients ranged from 17 to about 35 years old, and most were from eight to 24 weeks pregnant.

But many details are missing. During one 911 call in February, a 35-year-old patient “was crashing” and “unresponsive,” but it’s unclear what happened after the call ended.

The two clinics involved are the privately owned Southwestern Women’s Options and the University of New Mexi- co’s Center for Reproductive Health.

Billy Sparks, communications director for the UNM’s Health Sciences Center, called the complaints an attempt “to try to intimidate both patients and providers.”

An office manager for Southwestern Women’s Options said she could not discuss the cases because of patient confidentiality, but said it is not unusual to have complications from surgeries.

“The public is best served by the reminder that abortion is legal and it’s safe, precisely because we use extra caution (in calling 911) even when it exposes us to this form of harassment,” said the woman, who wouldn’t give her name.

Ten of the calls came from Southwestern Women’s Options; three from the UNM clinic.

Cases confidential
The Southwestern Women’s Clinic made headlines when its physician-owner opted to perform third-trimester abortions after the 2009 slaying of a Kansas physician who also did the controversial procedure.

At least one of the 911 calls under investigation in New Mexico appears to have involved a Southwestern Women’s clinic patient in her 20s who was having a lateterm abortion.

“The doctor’s concerned we have a uterine rupture during a late-term abortion procedure,” the clinic staffer told a dispatcher.

Medical Board executive director Lynn Hart wouldn’t answer specific questions about the board inquiry, but released a written statement to the Journal last week.

“All allegations before the New Mexico Medical Board are taken seriously including these. As the board examines this matter, we will consider all of the evidence to determine whether these complaints have any merit, though we are still in the early stages of the investigation. All parties involved will be afforded due process.

“However, the matters of the case are confidential and we cannot divulge details at the present time. The Board will continue to conduct its other business as we determine whether the actions in question violate the Medical Practice Act and meet normal standards of care.”

The board, made up of physicians, a physician assistant and two private citizens appointed by the governor, licenses and disciplines physicians and physician assistants.

Under state law, the findings of an investigation only become public if the board takes action against a physician. And investigations of citizen complaints are running at least six months behind, according to board records.

911 calls released
A senior policy advisor for the Wichita-based pro-life group, Operation Rescue, told the Journal last week that she had no first-hand information about the 13 incidents. But she said the 911 recordings provide times, dates, gestation periods, types of abortions involved, as well as the ages and partial names of the patients who required emergency help.

The tapes were furnished by the city of Albuquerque based on public records requests submitted by pro-life organizations that included Project Defending Life of Albuquerque, which turned them over to Operation Rescue.

“Our goal is to have an unbiased investigation that determines whether or not there have been standard of care violations that have endangered the lives of these women at a rate of one every 10 weeks,” said Cheryl Sullenger, of Operation Rescue, in a phone interview.

Her group’s website goes even further: “We demand the New Mexico Medical Board close these dangerous abortion mills down.”

The website has posted photos of clinic physicians and links for the public to hear the 911 communications.

Sullenger said the records request to the city turned up no 911 calls from Planned Parenthood’s surgical center in Albuquerque.

Meanwhile, the medical board website shows no public disciplinary actions have ever been taken in New Mexico against any of the clinics’ physicians, two of whom worked with Kansas physician George Tiller before his murder by an anti-abortion activist.

UNM clinic responds
Sparks said the UNM clinic will cooperate with the board’s investigation but added: “We are all aware of the allegations to the New Mexico Medical Board from a convicted felon who spent prison time for her role in the bombing of a clinic.”

In 1988, Sullenger pleaded guilty to plotting to bomb a California abortion clinic and served about two years in prison. She has since renounced violent action.

News reports have also quoted Sullenger as saying that Scott Roeder, the man convicted of fatally shooting Tiller in 2009, had previous contact with her group.

Sparks said 911 calls are ordinarily public record but should not have been released by the city in this instance because they revealed confidential patient medical information.

A city of Albuquerque spokesman on Friday didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

Sparks said anti-abortion advocates have also alleged that a UNM clinic patient died, which he said “is a complete and total fabrication. No patient has ever died as a result of the medical care given in the clinic.”

He was highly critical of Operation Rescue.

“Understanding the dangerous and proven violent history of the individuals involved in this organization, a meeting was actually held between the FBI, U.S. Department of Justice and state and local law enforcement officials in order to provide additional protection and advice for our personnel and our patients.”

The first meeting was in 2010, and more have followed, he added.

FBI spokesman Frank Fisher released a statement Friday: “The FBI will not discuss any meetings it may or may not have had with specific organizations. However, the FBI is proactive in making sure the safety and rights of all American citizens are protected.”

Focus on transports
Meanwhile, the office manager at Southwestern Women’s Options said patient safety and privacy are “our chief concern.”

“In the interest of their safety, we’ve always transferred patients to local hospitals when the attending physician deems it’s appropriate, and we’ll continue to do so.”

Albuquerque isn’t the only location where Operation Rescue has focused on emergency transports.

The group’s website highlights volunteers who have filmed ambulances and paramedic crews arriving at abortion clinics in Florida, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Operation Rescue also takes credit for an “undercover investigation” that didn’t involve 911 calls but spurred a Texas Medical Board investigation of about 10 physicians who perform abortions.

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