Posts Tagged ‘Dr. Ball’

The Star-Tribune recently published an interesting article profiling Dr. Carol Ball, a doctor in Minnesota who travels to South Dakota at least once a week to provide abortions. If you’re not aware, South Dakota is home to only one abortion clinic, and there are no doctors in the state who perform the procedure. As a result, the Planned Parenthood clinic flies in a rotation of four doctors, three from Minnesota and one from Colorado. The article covers a wide range of details concerning the situation, including Dr. Ball’s reaction to protestors and the murder of George Tiller. Dr. Ball, it should be noted, travels to South Dakota anonymously and is transported with a security detail.

One of the things that I find most interesting about the article is Dr. Ball discussing her decision to “come out” (so to speak) as an abortion provider. She mentions that, in the past, when asked what she did for a living, she would reply “obstetrician and gynecologist.” Now, she tells people: “I work for Planned Parenthood.”

It’s an interesting dilemma, and one that I can identify with. There have been times in my life in which I’ve had an internal struggle over whether to reveal that I worked at Planned Parenthood… or if, instead, I should simply say something generic, like “I work at a clinic.” For better or worse, telling someone that you work for Planned Parenthood is going to shape their opinion about you… and I’ve heard both positive and negative reactions.

But I agree with Dr. Ball that it’s important to be upfront and honest about this. She says that it’s so she can show her children that it’s important to stand up “for what you believe.” But I would also wager that it’s important to those South Dakota women, those patients who travel upwards of five hours to see her… it’s important for them to know that they have an ally who will stand up for them.