Sick children at Gunnedah Hospital will receive a boost after the presentation of special medical garments called Supertees which double as superhero costumes.
It followed last week’s Supertee packing event hosted by Club Gunnedah where local community members joined a volunteer production line to help distribute the gift packs.
Supertee was founded by Jason Sotiris to make hospital stays and medical treatment easier for young children by providing a medical garment designed as fun costumes that provide parents and hospital staff with an easier way to change their child while assessing or bypassing medical lines.
The idea came to him while his then one-year-old daughter, Angela, was undergoing chemotherapy in hospital.
He was observing his daughter’s IV drips, heart monitors, and central line when she woke suddenly and was unwell due to her treatment.
He wanted to create a garment that could be changed easily whether the patient was awake or asleep.
Not only would this make life easier for nurses and parents, but it would also reduce stress for patients during difficult times.
Each Supertee features open arm pits for easier temperature monitoring, customised pouches to carry specific medical devices and organise tubes, as well as split sides with plastic press studs which are X-ray and MRI scan friendly.
Garments already include several superhero designs and will soon also feature a pink ballerina and an NRL design as well.
Last Friday, about 20 volunteers packed Supertees along with children’s activity packs and personal, handwritten messages of hope from the Gunnedah community.
Supertee operations coordinator Terry Edgar said while children are drawn to the superhero garments, the messages are often read by the parents and carers.
As one mum would later tell of the message card: “It was the hug she didn’t know she needed.”
Mr Edgar said the Supertee is more than a shirt and is helping the “little heroes fight the big battles”.
Among those helping pack the Supertee boxes was Gunnedah local, Bailee Thomas.
His nephew underwent treatment for cancer and said it was a “scary” time for the entire family.
Although his nephew is now in remission, Bailee was eager to assist other families in need.
“It’s great what (Supertee) are doing,” he said.
“I just want to help out.”
Club Gunnedah general manager Marc Eisenhauer said it was a privilege to host the packing event for Supertee and support sick children in the local area.
“It’s helping the kids get through tough times …. putting a smile on their face,” he said.
It was not just Gunnedah that benefited from last week’s packing event, as the Supertees were due to be distributed to sick children at Quirindi, Boggabri and Narrabri as well.
Volunteer Supertee packer, Bailee Thomas. Volunteers wore masks and gloves as the gift boxes would enter the hospital setting.
Daisy White.
Dale Holmes.
Karolina Mingay assists with the packing.
ABOVE: A personal message written by Gunnedah mayor Colleen Fuller for the Supertee boxes. The messages written by the Gunnedah community were delivered to hospitals and health care settings across the local region.
Pat Gaynor and Ken Renton get to work on box packing.
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