Episode 34: "Human-Centered Practice: Kindness, Burnout, and the Moral Core of Medicine" with Dr. Sabena Jameel

What does it mean to lead as a flourishing leader in a world of burnout, bureaucracy, and moral complexity — especially in healthcare?

In this episode of The Flourishing Leaders Podcast, Dr. Scott Parsons and Jason Viyar are joined by Dr. Sabena Jameel — professor of medical professionalism, character education scholar, physician, inner-city Birmingham GP, and co-founder of the Practical Wisdom Network.

Sabena shares a deeply human vision for leadership rooted in service, values, and community, including the African concept of Ubuntu — a “philosophy of shared humanity and interconnectedness and community-based identity.” She also reflects on the moral heart of being a “good doctor,” the role of gratitude and boundaries in preventing burnout, and why wisdom must be enacted — not just discussed. 

Sabena was also named winner of the University of Birmingham’s Joseph Chamberlain Award for Educational Advancement (Founders’ Awards 2025). 

In this episode, they explore:

• Why flourishing leadership is deeply connected to service (and joy)
• Ubuntu and leadership as shared humanity and interdependence
• What “human-centered medicine” really means — and why it’s essential today
• Gratitude, mortality, and legacy: “How can I be a good ancestor?”
• Moral injury in medicine — and what virtues can (and can’t) do
• Can AI be wise… or can it only augment human wisdom?
• Sabena’s “Radial Holistic Professionalism” curriculum and forming professional identity from the inside out

To learn more about the Practical Wisdom Network, visit their website or LinkedIn page. 

To connect with Sabena, visit her LinkedIn page.

Be sure to check out her book, Ethics and the Good Doctor: Character in the Professional Domain, here or anywhere you get books.

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Hosted by Dr. Scott Parsons, this podcast explores how character, virtue, wisdom, and purpose can shape a more flourishing life and leadership journey.

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