Working life: Dr Maeve Hurley, CEO of Ag Éisteacht,

8am

I have my short, medium and long-term goals written on a purple board by my desk, and I update these regularly. I check my emails and reply to anything outstanding.

We aim to have ‘quiet time’ in our office until first meeting at 9.30am, so this is a good time to work without interruption.

9.30am

At our team meeting, our facilitators and administrators prepare for upcoming training courses, such as our brief encounters course, which trains staff in anticipating, recognising and responding to signals of distress in clients, when time and resources are limited.

As an experienced GP myself, I’m well aware of the challenges healthcare professionals face in their communications with clients, and our evidence-based training programmes stem from many years of expertise in the area.

11am

This part of the day is often spent making contact with clients who do our courses, and looking at ways to best facilitate their needs.

Frontline workers, especially those in the healthcare industry, are often stretched to capacity, so we’re always looking at new ways to support them by providing training at a time and place that suits.

1pm

Our core values are time, attention and respect, and we try to emulate these in our dealings with everyone, including in our work relationships.

For lunch, one of the team usually pops out to get salads for everyone, and we gather to eat together and catch up on our day. It really enhances a supportive team environment, which is very important to us.

2pm

My afternoon is often spent in meetings with clients or organisations we collaborate with, everyone from GP registrars and public health nurses to adolescent mental health groups and charities such as Enable Ireland.

5pm

At the end of the day I catch up on social media. I’ve recently discovered the joys of Twitter and find it very useful for keeping abreast of relevant events and news.

* For more information, see www.ageisteacht.com

* Dr Maeve Hurley, CEO of Ag Éisteacht, a charity which runs courses for frontline workers in the healthcare and education sectors, focusing on effective interaction and communication with clients and patients.