Girl with rare disease invents teddy bear cover to hide IV bags

Image source, Medi Teddy

Being in a hospital can be scary for children, so one young girl - who is battling a rare disease herself - has invented a special teddy bear to make the experience easier for other kids.

Ella, who lives in the USA, was seven when she became ill and had to receive treatment in hospital.

She found the medical equipment scary and came up with Medi Teddy as a way to make herself feel better about the situation.

Ella has a condition called autoimmune disease, which is when your immune system gets confused, thinks you're sick and attacks the body. It means that Ella needs treatment every eight weeks for the rest of her life.

The treatment, which often means she has to miss school, involves an intravenous bag (IV bag). The bag has medicine or blood inside it, which gets transferred into the body.

Without the treatment Ella is at high risk of injuries, making it hard for her to play outside like other children.

Getting the medicine from the bag takes an entire day and leaves her feeling pretty unwell.

Ella thought that the bag was scary, so she came up with Medi Teddy - a cute teddy bear with a pouch that slides over the bag.

Image source, Medi Teddi

Image caption, After Ella became unwell she came up with a teddy bear that slides over medical bags in hospital.

When Ella realised how much her Medi Teddy had helped her, she decided other sick children should have one too.

"I hope Medi Teddy helps me as much as it helps you," Ella wrote on her website.

Now aged 12, she has started a GoFundMe page to raise the money needed to produce at least 500 Medi Teddys.

She has raised over $11,000 and plans to donate all the Medi Teddys to children going through similar treatments in hospital.