“Organ donation only good thing that can come out of fatal car crash.”

WHEN patients come to Dr Eugene Kearney with serious ailments, they can be assured he understands what they are going through, and not just from a medical perspective.

The 64-year-old GP from Baltray, Co Louth, had a heart transplant seven years ago after developing complications with a bypass he had 10 years earlier. A second bypass wasn't possible and his future looked bleak, not to mention short.

"I was very disabled by that stage. I got angina dressing myself. I was technically unfit to work, but I used to go in as long as I could sit and see patients. It was better than sitting at home getting anxious," he said.