MEDICAL NEGLECT

ICE Whistleblower Complaint Alleges ‘Uterus Collector’ Doctor Performed Mass Hysterectomies

The allegations are part of a larger complaint alleging “jarring medical neglect” and lack of coronavirus safety precautions at a detention center in Georgia.

Several immigration advocacy groups filed a complaint on behalf of a whistleblower nurse to the Office of the Inspector General on Monday, alleging “jarring medical neglect” and a lack of COVID-19 safety precautions at Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia. Among several charges of negligence, the complaint describes reports of high rates of hysterectomies performed on Spanish-speaking immigrant women. The whistleblower, Dawn Wooten, said she believed the women, who did not speak English well, did not fully understand why the procedure had been performed on them. Wooten told The Intercept the situation in Irwin resembled a “silent pandemic,” referring to other charges of workplace safety violations detailed in the Monday complaint.

Upon meeting several women in detention who had received hysterectomies, one unnamed detainee in the complaint likened the experience to an “experimental concentration camp.” Wooten also questioned the doctor, who works outside the facility. “Everybody he sees has a hysterectomy—just about everybody,” Wooten said. “Everybody’s uterus cannot be that bad,” she added, after referring to him as the “uterus collector.” Three lawyers cited by NBC News identified the doctor as Dr. Mahendra Amin.