June Shannon, Assistant communications officer at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).
Personal/family: Partner Tony and our two cats, Kevin and LouLou.
What figure from the world of medicine/health do you most admire?
Apart from my father, Dr Bill Shannon, I also greatly admire GPs working in deprived and rural areas.
What other career might you have chosen?
As I have a great love for animals I would have to say veterinary.
If you were appointed Minister for Health, what would be your first priority?
Immediately open the new Ballymun Health Centre and order the national roll-out of the Irish Cervical Screening Programme.
Do you have a phobia/what is your greatest fear?
I suffer greatly from dentophobia.
Have you ever been a patient and were you a good one?
Only as a child and my mum assures me that I was very good.
What three books would you bring to a desert island?
The Master by Colm Tóibín, Changing the Times - Irish Women Journalists 1969-1981; and The Complete works of Oscar Wilde.
Have you a fail-safe method of dealing with stress?
I do not suffer from stress, but I am a carrier.
What is your favourite TV or radio programme?
Have I got News for You, Desperate Housewives, Fat Friends and The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show.
If you did not live in Ireland, where would you choose to spend the rest of your life?
Having lived there for over a year I would have to choose Italy for its people, food, language and ambiance.
Summarise yourself in about 12 words.
Clumsy, kind, good-humoured, sociable, caring, reflective, loyal, honest, trustworthy and not a morning person.
Do you use alternative medicine/therapies?
If chocolate is an alternative therapy.
Who or what makes you laugh?
My partner Tony and my friends.