Tutu hospital gown gives little Ava chance to feel like a ballerina while battling leukaemia

West Australian

5 days ago

Little Ava O'Kelly had to stop dance classes while fighting cancer but the creation of a tutu medical garment means she can still feel like a ballerina even when enduring tough treatments in hospital.
The four-year-old was the first child in WA to receive the ballerina-themed medical garment by Supertee and thanks to Telethon funding more than 1500 Supertees will be supplied to kids in WA hospitals over the next year.
The outfit may look like any other dress up costume but the garments have side and top openings that enable parents and hospital staff to easily change clothing and access or bypass medical lines.
Mum Lucy O'Kelly said it was their very first stay in hospital, in May 2024, when Ava was given her first Supertee while undergoing a flurry of tests.
'When she's going through lumbar punctures, bone marrow tests, an awful lot of theatre and general anaesthetics you think a t-shirt is the least on your mind but when you have it — it just completely changes everything,' she said.
'For kids, they don't realise it's for the hard stuff they just think it's playing dress up.
'This new design is amazing. There's nothing better than still feeling like a princess when you're in hospital.'
Little Ava has a long road to recovery still taking oral chemotherapy everyday and having a more intense form of the treatment once a week.
However, after a year away from her dance classes she has been able to return to ballet and tap.
'She pirouettes around the room and you can see her energy is coming back, which is really nice to see,' Ms O'Kelly said.
Kids across Perth Children's Hospital wards received Supertees after West Australian volunteers spent a day packing hundreds of garments.
Supertee founder Jason Sotiris the charity relied on the support of organisations like Telethon to provide the garments to as many children as possible.
'We operate nationwide, but we rely on the help of volunteers, and because of the generosity from 7Telethon it was only fitting that we had West Australians pack for WA children,' he said.
'There's a lot of studies that indicate that there is power in having a costume and it gives these children permission to impersonate a hero, and in this case, what we are looking to give to children for the first time is a beautiful ballerina costume.
'We want to bring some fun, some imagination but also some comfort and some joy to what kids are going through in hospital.'