Sydney hospital funds Australia's first neonatal MRI for newborn care
The Royal Hospital for Women Foundation is funding Australia's first neonatal MRI to scan newborns' brains without adult facility transfers.
When Harriet Waugh's first child was born prematurely, she founded the hospital's Ladies Luncheon in 2016. The fundraising group set a new goal: Australia's first neonatal MRI machine inside The Royal's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
The dedicated machine would let doctors get safer, faster and more precise images of a baby's brain without moving fragile newborns to shared adult imaging facilities. Earlier diagnosis of brain injuries could mean faster treatment during the critical first days of life.
Baby Andy Macintyre stopped breathing just one minute after birth and needed 10 minutes of CPR, then an MRI to check his brain. He spent 28 days in hospital, 20 in the NICU.
His family later raised $20,000 for the Foundation. The luncheon has now raised more than $3.5 million over eight years.
- Over 3.5 million dollars
- Funds raised by luncheon
- Eight years since 2016
- Years of fundraising
- The Royal Hospital for Women, Sydney
- Hospital location
Why it mattersPremature and critically ill newborns can get faster diagnosis and specialised care without the trauma and risk of being transported to adult imaging facilities.
AustraliaThe Royal's NICU supports about 1,000 premature and critically ill babies every year and is Australia's largest neonatal intensive care unit. More than 80 per cent of its equipment has been funded by donors.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 10 d ago
