BORN and bred in Mackay, Dr Harris Eyre knew at an early age that he wanted to pursue a career in the medical field and has proven that discipline and determination pays off.

At 28, he is a medical doctor, academic, entrepreneur in residence and executive and has made the move to the world stage in the medical field.

His interest in sports medicine was sparked by swimming and soccer that he participated in as a child.

"I had some injuries and would go to see physical therapists and get x-rays,” Dr Eyre said.

"That started my fascination with medicine, particularly muscular injuries.”

Years out from his graduation at Whitsunday Anglican School he made sure to know exactly what he needed to achieve in order to get accepted into medical school at James Cook University.

"Hard work and determination is really important,” he said.

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"Making sacrifices sometimes to study when you would rather play sports and chill out with friends.”

He credits much of his early-on success to his parents who invested in good schooling and supporting him in his endeavours.

Meeting a professor in psychiatry during his studies was a life changing connection for Dr Eyre.

"I started working with a local professor who specialised in psychiatry, looking into the effects of physical exercise on depression and it merged my interests,” he said.

"I was very fortunate to find a professor that took me under their wing and provided mentoring for me.

"It was one of the biggest influences in my life that got me to where I am and taught me the importance of having a good mentor.”

This year Dr Eyre's work was recognised by JCU when he received the Outstanding Alumni Award for the College of Medicine and Dentistry.

"Yes I have a medical degree and I have a PhD but what I do now, I work as a business executive building companies around new technologies around mental health,” he said.

"The problem in mental health is that it is very common and it affects people, their families and the economy and diagnosis is really inadequate.

"It is based on an interview which is quite subjective and treatment is often trial and error.”

"I realised the issues and the opportunities.”

Dr Eyre lives and works in Houston, Texas, working with doctors and scientists helping to develop technologies advancing the medical field across the world.

He does not see his job as work and is grateful to be able to say it is fun keeping him working long hours and travelling. But he has not forgotten his home.

"I would be very happy if I was a GP in Mackay also I would be having an impact on peoples life every day and having a great lifestyle,” he said.

"I like seeing friends and seeing how the cities are going, I still mentor medical students in Northern Queensland.”

At this point in time he has been reminded of tropical Queensland as Hurricane Harvey unleashed its force on Houston.

Dr Eyre left to Los Angeles and said his home was safe but he worried about friends and the community at large.

He said friends had lost their home, fortunately they were insured unlike others, but were now facing the wait for funding to come through before being able to make claims.

Worlds apart but not so different after all.

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After graduating from James Cook University in 2011 with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery with Honours he has excelled in the academic field.

He uses biomarkers, genomics and data analysis to innovate the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental health disorders.

His goal is to reduce human suffering from disorders like depression.

Based in Houston, Texas, at the world's largest medical centre the Texas Medical Centre he is the Chief Medical Officer and Co-Founder of CNSDose.

The company has developed a world- leading genetic test to determine the best antidepressant treatment.

The aim of the business is to reduce the suffering for patients caused by trial-and-error prescribing.

Dr Eyre was awared the W.G. Walker Fulbright Scholarship, for the top-ranked postgraduate scholar in Australia which led him to study mental health innovation at the University of California.

He has published over 80 paper and written for well known journals in the medical field.

He also has the role of Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the Texas Medical Centre's Innovation Institute and an Honorary Research Fellow with JCU, Deakin√ University, The University of Adelaide and The University of Melbourne.

His mum Janice Eyre said he did not come from a medical background and she was amazed by how well he had done since studying his undergraduate.

"I still sort of can't believe that he is doing what he is doing,” she said.