Commander Donahue grew up in Philadelphia, PA and graduated from St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in 1997. He then attended Fairfield University in Connecticut and graduated with a degree in Biology in 2001. He was commissioned as an Ensign in the US Naval Reserves in 2003 and attended Nova Southeastern University where he graduated as a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in 2007. He was then commissioned as an active-duty Lieutenant in 2007. He completed an internship in General Surgery at Naval Medical Center San Diego and was awarded Surgery Intern of the Year in 2008.

He then reported as a General Medical Officer with Third Battalion, First Marines, Camp Pendleton, California. He deployed to the western Pacific with the Battalion Landing Team of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit in 2008. In 2010, He deployed as Battalion Surgeon to FOB Delhi in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. In 2011, he returned to Naval Medical Center San Diego and completed his residency in General Surgery in 2015.

Commander Donahue reported to Fleet Surgical Team 5 in San Diego in 2015. He deployed as Surgeon with the team in 2016 aboard the USS Makin Island to the Indian Ocean in support of maritime and national security operations. In 2018, he went on to Trauma/Surgical Critical Care fellowship at the University of Texas, Houston and graduated in 2020.

After fellowship, he reported as Trauma Surgeon to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth. In 2022, he deployed on the USNS Comfort in support of Operation Continuing Promise. While at Portsmouth, Commander Donahue was selected as the Trauma Medical Director and helped lead efforts to create the US Navy’s first ever level 2 Trauma Center. He is double board certified in Surgery and Surgical Critical Care and holds an academic appointment of Assistant Professor of Surgery for the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. He is also an adjunct faculty in the Surgery Department at the Eastern Virginia Medical School. He is a course director for both Advanced Traumatic Life Support (ATLS) and Advance Surgical Skills for Exposure in Trauma (ASSET).  He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and an active member of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma. His military decorations include a Fleet Marine Force Warfare device, Surface Warfare Medical Department Officer device, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.