Case 1:17-cv-00488-CBA Document 10 Filed 01/31/17 Page 1 of 3 PageID #: 120 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK SUHA AMIN ABDULLAH ABUSHAMMA Petitioner, v. Case No. 1 :17-cv-00488 DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY ("DHS"); U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION ("CBP"); JOHN KELLY, Secretary of DHS; KEVIN K. MCALEENAN, Acting Commissioner of CBP; and JAMES T. MADDEN, New York Field Director, CBP. Date: January 30, 2017 Respondents. I, Abby Spencer declare, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746 and subject to penalty of perjury, that that following is true and correct: I. My name is Abby Spencer, and I am a physician licensed by the Ohio State Medical Board. I am employed as a physician at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and I serve as the Program Director for the Cleveland Clinic Foundation's Internal Medicine Residency Program (the "Program"). I have personal knowledge of the information described herein, and could testify to this information if called to do so. 2. Dr. Suha Amin Abdullah Abushamma is a physician in the Program and personally known to me. She has been employed by the Cleveland Clinic as a doctor of internal medicine for six months. She is in her first year of the three year Program. Our Program receives approximately 5,000 applications for residency positions, we interview about 650 of those applicants and rank about 500 of them to match 56 categorical residents. Dr. Abushamma was ranked quite high in this process. She graduated from the University of Medical Sciences & Technology Faculty of Case 1:17-cv-00488-CBA Document 10 Filed 01/31/17 Page 2 of 3 PageID #: 121 Medicine in Sudan in J uly 2013 at the top of her class with Distinct Honors, receiving the Best , Overall Pe rformance award in her class. During medical school, Dr. Abushamma was an active member of the IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Students Association), an organization which organizes projects, programs, seminars and workshops on areas of public health and medical educatio n Dr. Abushamma went on to co m plete an internship at the Royal . Commission Medical Center, in Yanbu Industrial City of Saudi Arabia. Upon her graduation, she spent time performin g clinical externships and obs ervership s at several top academic centers in the United States including University of California, San Francisco and the Heart and Vascul ar Institute of Detroit, Michigan . 3. As a phy sic i an at Cleveland Clinic, she treats patients on a dail y basis, serving as the primary ca re physician. These patients depend on her to manage their care, pr escribe and refill their medications, check their labs, coordinate specialty care when needed and speak with them about their medical conditions and discuss next steps. Since matriculating to the Program in July, she has been a stand-out physician and colleague. She has repeatedly and consiskntly demonstrated the ut m ost ethical standards and continued to prioritize patient needs. She has been integral in the care of the s e patients, who in addition to her supervising physicians, frequently pro vide unsolicited positive feedback regarding her bedside manner and clinical acu men. As a colleague, she is reliable, happy to help as a team-player when convenient and well re spected by her peers. Additionally, she has demonstrated cognizance of systems-based practice and frequently works to enhance our clin i cal climate. 4. I underst and that Dr. Abushamma attempted to return to the Un it e d States on January 28,2017 after short trip to visit her family in Saudi Arabia, but was prevented from doing so and rctumed to Saudi Arabia bec ause of President Trump's Executive Order, i s sued on January 27, 2017, e ntitled '·Protecting the Nation from Foreig n Terrorist Entry Into the United States" [herei nafter "EO"]. Case 1:17-cv-00488-CBA Document 10 Filed 01/31/17 Page 3 of 3 PageID #: 122 5. If Dr. Abushamma is not permitted to return to need to be cancelled and a hindrance to 6. the United States, some of her scheduled patients will or covered by residents from oth er rotations. It will be a hardship for the Program her p atients and her clinical education to not be able to take care of her patients. Dr. Abushamma has perfmmed well to date. Her clinical pe rformance was reviewed by our Program's Clinical Competency C om m i tt ee in September: she is perfonning as expected, meeting her ACGME (Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education) milestones with no concerns. . Should she be allowed to return to the Program, we would anticipate that she will successfully complete her training July 5, 2019. If she is not ret u m ed her ability to , graduate from the Program will be impacted. 7. I fully support wi thout reservation Dr. Abushamma to be allowed to continue her training with our Program at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio. 8. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746, I hereby verify that the information contained herein is true and COITect to the best of my information and belief. Executed this 30th day of January, 2017, at Cleveland, Ohio. ;· ·; 1 i ft/ 1,.,\ Abf{y f,"' , l bt­ S pencer. ' . D. .