Despite her numerous sex scenes, Donna did not have a genuinely romantic storyline until beginning a slow-burning romance with agency nurse Kieran Callaghan in late 2010. She initially disliked him, suspecting him of shirking his work duties, and at one point requested that he never return to her ward. Jacobs assessed that Donna was attracted to him, but would not allow herself to accept it at first, having had so many failed relationships with men ill-suited to her. They went on to begin a relationship, with Jacobs describing Kieran as "Donna's dream come true", and co-star Sloane deeming the two a "great match". Their relationship was impeded by Kieran's commitment to the TA and tour of duty in Afghanistan. Sloane felt that Kieran did not sufficiently explain the extent of his involvement with the TA, and assessed that Donna failed to understand his "soldier mentality", stating that their problems stemmed from a mutual stubbornness. Following Kieran's deployment, television magazine "What's on TV" noted a change in Donna's demeanour, observing that she had "soured" in contrast to her former "bubbly" friendliness. Kieran lost a leg in an IED explosion. In the aftermath, he and Donna reunited, before moving away together.