Working life: Dr Ronan Margey, consultant interventional cardiologist

6.30am

8.15am

My days alternate between theatre and outpatients clinic. On clinic day, the first 45 minutes is spent on administration.

As the lead clinical cardiologist at the Mater Cork Heart and Vascular Centre, I have considerable responsibility, overseeing quality control and audits, general departmental organisation, and business development. I’m also chair of the resuscitation committee, overseeing our resuscitation protocols for patient safety.

9am

My first patient arrives. We see everything from chest pain to complex cardiac rhythm disorders. We offer same-day testing, so if a patient needs a stress test, that’s organised, and I evaluate the results there and then, or if the patient needs an ECG — a test that checks for problems with the electrical activity of the heart — we can give results on the day.

It’s efficient and avoids multiple patient appointments. 11am I carry out a ward round and make adjustments to medication.

1.30pm

I grab some lunch.

2pm If it’s a theatre day, I could have a dozen procedures, from angiograms (X-rays using a special dye and camera to take pictures of arterial blood flow) to angioplasties — non-surgical procedures that relieve narrowing of the arteries to heart muscle, to coronary stenting, where a balloon is inflated inside a tiny, metal mesh tube that supports the artery walls to keep the vessels wide open, allowing blood to flow freely to the heart muscles.

4pm 

I have a particular interest in cutting-edge, interventional techniques, in particular trans-catheter, aortic valve replacement technology. I only do this in the Mater Dublin, but I do the work-ups and post-procedure care in Cork.

It involves delivering a fully collapsible replacement valve to the site of a damaged value via catheter inserted in the groin. Once the new valve is expanded, it pushes the old valve out of the way and takes over the job of regulating blood flow.

6.30pm 

I try to be home to have dinner with family. I run 5km 3-4 times a week and I like relaxing with box sets: eg, Mad Men.

* Dr Ronan Margey, consultant interventional cardiologist, Mater Private, Cork.