Kentucky nurse donates kidney to children’s hospital patient

Ben Pratt, a 3-year-old Kentucky native, was born with kidneys that didn’t work. Lucky for him, Santa came early last year and Pratt was gifted with a new, working kidney. Who was the kind Samaritan who gifted Pratt his new organ? None other than Beth Warren, Pratt’s primary nurse in the neonatal intensive-care unit at Kentucky Children’s Hospital in Lexington.

Pratt stayed in this very hospital for more than four months after he was born on August 22, 2009. It was here that Pratt and Warren grew close and she never forgot his special case. Warren not only fell in love with the blue-eyed baby, she also got to know his family really well. His mom, Shayla Pratt, is also a nurse and was at the hospital every day with Ben and Warren.

It’s not surprising, then, that Warren admits that the decision to give Pratt a kidney was not a hard one. “To me, he’s been just part of my family,” she told Kentucky.com. “I knew this was God’s plan for us.” As of November 30th, with a kidney that works, Pratt can now enjoy foods he couldn’t before, from bananas to French fries. He now weighs 33 pounds, up 4 pounds from before the surgery.

“He acts like he feels so much better. It’s amazing. He’s a miracle,” reports mom.

Would you ever consider donating something as serious as a kidney to one of your patients? Have you ever known someone who did something like this?