Welcome to the being better together podcast, from Learning from Excellence and Civility Saves Lives. This podcast is a series of conversations with people who inspire us, about making healthcare a better place to work. We cover a wealth of topics, from workplace cultures, through inspiration, laughter and joy, to appreciative inquiry and how do work safely.
Season 4: episode 1. Sapna Kudchadkar on the three most important words in healthcare leadership.
In this episode, we are joined by Dr Sapna Kudchadkar, a paediatric intensivist and anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins. Shapna shares her inspiring journey from a clinician intially determined to avoid research to becoming the pioneer of the PICU Up! program - an initiative aimed at transforming sleep and early mobilsation in the PICU. We explore how she overcame grant rejections through tenacity and the guidance of supportive mentors. Sapna also discussed the vital importance of the interprofessinal team, the power of storytelling for advocacy, and why the three most important words in healthcare leadership are "I don't know". This conversation is packed with insights on perseverance, mentorship and spreading excellence through internationl collaboration.
More information on PICU Up! here. (https://www.johnshopkinssolutions.com/solution/amp/picu-up/)
5 Jun 2026
Series 3: episode 7. Paul Stretton on culture and teams.
Paul Stretton is a safety consultant at Quantum Safety (https://www.quantum-safety.com/)and a friend of LFE. Paul's career so far has followed an interesting, varied path—starting out in the positive, growth-oriented world of sports coaching and education, before moving into the deficit-based world of construction and health and safety.In this conversation, we explore a range of topics, including how we understand team cultures and what leads to burnout and poor performance. We look at the concept of micro-cultures within large organizations, the importance of our cultural response to isolated "toxic acts," and how we actually "set" the tone within our teams. We also discuss the impact of expressing appreciation "upstream"—from the shop floor to managers who are often under incredible strain—and get a glimpse into how we might use sports as a helpful metaphor to improve performance in healthcare.
13 Jan 2026
Series 3, episode 6: Sue Penlington on sustainability
Sue Penlington is the sustainability lead at Holkham estate, Norfolk. Sue is a passionate, driven conservationist, with skill and expertise in helping others to experience, understand and be inspired to protect the natural world. This conversation is full of practical wisdom: we talk about the power of nature (not just as a source of awe and wonder, but also as a promoter of wellbeing and motivation); we explore how to overcome resistance to change, through trust and small wins; Sue shares the "Holkham Way", a set of behaviours like "go see" which keep people engaged; and we discuss the role of storytelling and collaboration in turning complex data into something that inspires action.
A clip from this podcast was played at the 6th LFE conference, "Wonder", in November 2025.
Who has been a guest on Being Better, Together
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Dr Intikhab Zafurallah
Marina Cantacuzino
Rana Awdish
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Spotify
4.8 / 5
5 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 43 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
55
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
81
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