ON THE COUCH:Ursula Courtney is director of services with ARC Cancer Support
Family/personal:
Married to Randal.
Which living person do you most admire and why?
Barack Obama. I know he comes from a relatively privileged background but he has done much to encourage under-privileged people to make the most of their lives.
What do you regard as the top three problems facing Ireland's health system?
Keeping Irish nurses in Ireland, keeping ill or older people who want to be at home at home and providing community care for everyone who has been diagnosed with cancer - they shouldn't have to travel 150 miles for treatment.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Handbags and holidays.
What is your most unhealthy habit?
Not getting enough sleep. I am doing an MBA at the moment and don't get more than four hours' sleep.
How do you relax?
By watching Coronation Street and Strictly Come Dancing.
Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
I would love to have the heads of the three main political parties, Brian Cowen, Eamon Gilmore and Enda Kenny as well as Pierce Brosnan, because he is so gorgeous, and Dawn French because she is hilarious.
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
To excel at whatever I do.
What trait do you most value in your friends?
Friendship and empathy.
What talent would you most like to have?
To be able to do ballroom dancing.
Do you use alternative/ complementary medicines or therapies?
Yes, I use reflexology.
What is your earliest memory?
Being in my cot looking out at our garden while sucking my thumb. I must have been 18 months or so.
What is your most treasured possession?
Two awards I won this year - The Crystal Clear Award for initiative in the healthcare system and the Tiffany Award, which is an international award for the use of advocacy and creativity in cancer care.
What other career might you have chosen?
I am a nurse by training. My other choices would have been to be a musician or music teacher.
What books or films have inspired you?
Philadelphia and Forest Gump.
In conversation with Fiona Tyrrell