- A pediatric anesthesiologist adopted a 5-year-old patient named True after heart surgery
- True arrived for surgery alone, without a parent or caseworker present at the hospital
- Dr Amy Beethe and her husband officially adopted True 19 months after meeting him
A pediatric anesthesiologist at a children's hospital has adopted a young patient who initially arrived for a major heart surgery without a parent or guardian. In January 2022, Dr Amy Beethe came across the then five-year-old boy, named True, in a pre-operation room. True, who was in foster care, was dropped off at the hospital without a caseworker, who had missed out due to COVID-19.
After meeting True, Amy couldn't shake the sight of the little boy all alone and ended up telling her husband, Ryan Beethe, about him.
"He was just sitting there all alone. No adult with him at all," Beethe was quoted as saying by CBS News. "After I dropped True off in recovery, I called my husband and I just said, 'We need to have a talk when we get home. I need you to have an open mind,'" she added.
During the procedure that lasted seven hours, Amy kept staring at the face of the poor boy who had no one beside him during such a critical stage in his life. After Amy proposed adopting True, Ryan was a little hesitant at first.
"But it didn't take long to hear what was needed, and it just felt right. We went up and met True in the hospital, and it didn't take long to fall in love with him," Ryan said, adding: "We knew we needed him in our family."
19 months after initiating the process, the couple officially adopted the little boy. Amy and Ryan now have eight children: Three are biological, while others are adopted, including True's older sister, Laney. True's four other siblings were adopted by extended family members and a colleague of Amy to keep the children connected
True's Heart Transplant
According to Dr Jason Cole, a pediatric cardiologist and medical director of the Advanced Pediatric Heart Failure and Transplant Program at Children's Nebraska, True will eventually require a heart transplant as his condition is on the severe end of the spectrum.
However, Cole added that True's lifespan may have been extended after he found loving parents in Amy and Ryan, who recently celebrated his 10th birthday.
"Without a successful, loving home life, a patient like True with extraordinarily complex congenital heart disease would not be able to survive," said Cole.
"To be even considered as a viable candidate for a heart transplant, you must be in a stable environment with consistent care so that the organ is not rejected."
