After fundraising for a scanning machine, Sinéad got it to the hospital — just before her own baby arrived

Her gorgeous little baby arrived just days after Sinéad Hingston-Green presented the new ultrasound to the National Maternity Hospital's TLC Clinic

Sinéad Hingston-Green's beautiful new baby

Tue, 14 Dec, 2021 - 13:42

Caroline Delaney

Timing is everything when it comes to babies — from naps to feeds. And this little one even timed their arrival to allow mum to see the brand new ultrasound machine which she fundraised to buy.

Sinéad Hingston-Green went through four miscarriages and knew how reassuring good ultrasound images are when you're pregnant. So, she came up with the idea of fundraising €25k for a new scanning machine for the National Maternity Hospital's TLC clinic.

She said that she had been shocked at the poor quality of the images from the clinics outdated ultrasound machine.

The TLC Clinic is a specialised clinic established by Dr Cathy Allen to support women who previously suffered recurrent miscarriage.

Sinéad, who lives in Kiltiernan in Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown, was 30 years old when she was first pregnant. When she was 19 weeks pregnant with Lily, who's now 10, her husband died suddenly. She later married Michael and they had a son, Dylan.

The couple wanted a third child but bleeds, an ectopic pregnancy, and a chemical pregnancy left them devastated.

Sinéad fundraised along with Denis Boscovich of Ulster Bank for a modern ultrasound for the TLC clinic. This new MDI Medical scanner allows images to be sent directly to email and offers clear images. They presented the Clinic with a cheque for €33,358 this week.

Sinéad Hingston-Green with the fundraising cheque and new scanning machine. She said: "A big thank you to Marjut Ellis, the fundraising manager for being our constant go-to and also to Mary Brosnan, director of Midwifery and Nursing and Valerie Kinsella, assistant director of Midwifery and Nursing, for taking the time to come and join us!"

Speaking to the Irish Examiner when she was 29 weeks pregnant, she said: "I would love to have just one scan with this machine on this baby now."

Sinéad Hingston-Green with the new ultrasound machine. She said: "Thank you ALL so much for donating and supporting this fundraiser for us! It means more than you will ever know! xx"

Just three days ago she presented the brand new Voluson P8 Ultrasound machine to the hospital.

"I attended this clinic myself, and cannot tell you how comforting it was to have a weekly scan, and now the clarity of the images & pictures women will receive will be incredible, giving them even more peace of mind!!"

And then she revisited the National Maternity Hospital to give birth yesterday.

Sinéad's 'Baby Sparky' arrived a little early at 37 weeks and weighing 7lb 4oz.

"I cannot praise the staff of the @nationalmaternityhospital enough for how well they have looked after us! It may not have been the smooth sailing scheduled Caesarian section we had planned for the 16th, but it didn’t feel far from it with their incredible care!! Our hearts are BURSTING! Name TBD but I promise we’ll let you know as soon as we agree on one!"

Oh, and in case you're wondering, Baby Sparky is a gorgeous little boy.