A whistleblower complaint filed in the US sparked calls for a federal investigation after an Indian-descent gynecologist was alleged to have performed massive hysterectomies on immigrants without their full understanding and consent at a privately run detention facility. in the state of Georgia.
The complaint, filed by an employee of the detention center, did not identify him. But lawyers representing the victims have named the doctor as Mahendra Amin, according to US media reports.
“We are aware of the complainant’s allegations regarding Dr. Amin and we vehemently deny them,” Scott Grubman, the doctor’s attorney, said in a statement. “We hope that all the facts will come to light and we are confident that once they do, Dr. Amin will be cleared of any wrongdoing.”
Amin, 68, is a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology. Prism, the news website that first reported the whistleblower complaint, said it is based in Douglas, Georgia and affiliated with Coffee Regional Medical Center, which has since removed references to Amin from its website.
Amin reportedly studied medicine at the South Gujarat University Government Medical School in Surat, India, and was also admitted to a hospital.
On Wednesday, 173 Democratic members of the House of Representatives wrote to the US Department of Homeland Security to demand an investigation into the whistleblower complaint.
Pramila Jayapal, an Indian-American congresswoman who initiated the joint letter along with senior party leaders, said: “It appears that there may be at least 17 to 18 women who underwent unnecessary gynecological medical procedures from just this doctor, often without the consent or knowledge, and with the clear intention of sterilization. “
Dawn Wooten, a licensed nurse employed by the Irwin County Detention Center (ICDC) operated by the private prison company, LaSalle Corrections, had filed the complaint complaint through Project South, a non-profit organization, before the inspector general of the department of homeland security on Monday. . Wooten’s complaint alleged massive hysterectomies were performed amid rampant discontent over Covid-19 guidelines and unsanitary conditions at the facility.
Project South said it learned about the hysterectomies in interviews with several inmates. One of them reportedly confirmed: “Many women here have a hysterectomy.” Furthermore, some women undergoing the procedure reportedly appeared “confused” as to why they were forced to undergo it.
Wooten’s account, in his own words, is chilling. “Everyone you see has a hysterectomy, almost everyone. She even removed the wrong ovary from a young girl, ”Wooten said, recalling one particular case. “She (the victim) was supposed to have her left ovary removed because she had a cyst. She pulled out the correct one. She was upset, had to remove her left ovary again, and ended up with a total hysterectomy.
“She wants children. So she has to go home now and tell her husband that she cannot have children … she said that she was not fully under anesthesia and overheard him (the doctor) tell the nurse that he had removed the wrong ovary. . “
The outrage sparked by the allegations was fueled by an alarming and well-documented history of sterilizing people of color in the United States with the goal of preventing rapid population growth.
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