Enda Egan: Chief executive officer, The Carers Association.
Personal/family: Married to Kate, we got married just this time last year; she works as a regional officer with the Alzheimer's Society.
What figure from the world of medicine/health do you most admire? Any one of the 150,000 family carers who spend their time selflessly caring for others in their own homes without proper pay or many of the rights that the rest of us take for granted.
What other career might you have chosen? My first job was in horticulture, I occasionally think of going back, as I enjoyed working with plants (often easier than people).
If you were appointed Minister for Health, what would be your first priority? To put a national strategy for carers on the agenda of the Cabinet, providing proper payment and supports. Ireland's family carers work three million hours each week caring for loved ones. Proper investment in carers will save money in the medium to long term and yield benefits for all society.
Do you have a phobia/what is your greatest fear? Well, I don't like wasps. (I think it might have something to do with the Kilkenny colours.)
Have you ever been a patient and were you a good one? No, I have never been a patient, thank God.
What three books would you bring to a desert island? Ulysses, War and Peace. But the all-time favourite would have to be What car magazine!
Have you a fail-safe method of dealing with stress? Thankfully, I usually don't feel stress, but if I do, a list ticked off one by one helps.
What is your favourite TV or radio programme? Radio - Morning Ireland, 5-7 Live, Outside the Box and the Sunday Supplement. TV - Questions & Answers, Malcolm in the Middle and Coronation Street.
If you did not live in Ireland, where would you choose to spend the rest of your life? A little village called Ravello on the southwest coast of Italy; we spent some time there on honeymoon last year. It has it all.
Summarise yourself in 12 words. A straight-talking, committed, caring, hard-working person who usually takes on too much.
Do you use alternative medicine/therapies? Yes, I think there are many alternatives which have many uses. Vitamin C, garlic, arnica, massage and Chinese medicines.
Who or what makes you laugh? On TV, Malcolm in the Middle, Billy Connolly, the humour and innocence of children.
Interview by Dr Muiris Houston