The Metabolic Majlis

Reinventing Surgery: How Dr. Shafi Ahmed Streamed to 50 Million

Join host Ali Hashemi in conversation with Professor Shafi Ahmed—a pioneering colorectal surgeon, teacher, entrepreneur, and humanitarian—who’s transforming medicine through live-streamed surgeries, augmented reality, and virtual reality. From training 45,000 students worldwide in real time to envisioning a global virtual medical school, Dr. Ahmed shares how he’s pushing the boundaries of clinical practice and education. 01:04 Welcome & Introductions 02:32 Evolving a Surgical Career 07:20 Driving Innovation in the NHS 12:05 Scaling Healthcare & Tackling “Death by Pilot” 20:44 Healthcare’s Biggest Obstacle: Change Management 29:44 Rethinking Medical School 45:01 Live-Streamed Surgeries & Going Viral 56:14 Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality & the Metaverse 1:06:44 Future-Facing Education Models 1:15:03 Entrepreneurship & Lessons Learned 1:20:29 Closing Thoughts

Gut Myths, Leaky Gut, and Brain-Body Secrets with Dr. Karan Raj

Dr. Karan Rajan—surgeon, social media sensation, and gut-health educator to 10 million followers—joins Ali Hashemi to unpack some of the biggest myths about the gut. They discuss why we’re all “donuts,” how to manage IBS, the critical importance of fiber, and the surprising ways our microbes can influence our mood and metabolism. Dr. Rajan also shares insights on cutting-edge health tech, the future of personalized care, and the balance of practicing medicine in a modern, fast-changing world.00:51 Meet Dr. Karen, UK Surgeon & Gut Health Expert 01:20 The Gut as an External-Facing Organ: A Donut Analogy 02:30 Debunking “Leaky Gut”: Symptom, Not a Disease 04:00 Exploring the Gut–Brain Axis: Vagus Nerve & Neurotransmitters 07:00 Gut Health & Obesity: Beyond Willpower 08:00 Dietary Fiber Fundamentals: Fueling a Healthy Gut 09:00 Gluten, Probiotics, Prebiotics & Postbiotics: Fact vs. Fiction 10:00 Tracking Gut Health: Data, Food Diaries & Digital Tools 12:00 Integrating Tech & Trust: The Future of Personalized Healthcare 14:00 The Agency Chain: Turning Data into Actionable Outcomes 40:03 Bridging Gaps: Merging Public Understanding with Health Tech 44:00 Rapid Fire Q&A: Viral Content, Personal Challenges & Insights 48:17 Closing Thoughts: Empowering Patients & the Future of Gut Health

AI’s True Impact on Healthcare: Ali Hashemi Interviews Ali Parsa (Ex-CEO of Babylon Health)

In this episode of The Metabolic Majlis, Ali Hashemi sits down with Ali Parsa— father, entrepreneur, former CEO of Babylon Health, and founder of Quadrivia AI — to dissect healthcare’s biggest challenges. They explore AI's promise (and pitfalls) in clinical practice, how payment models shape innovation, and what it takes to serve millions rather than privileged ones. Join us for a candid, insightful conversation about building a better, more equitable future for health. 00:39 Ali Parsa’s Background & Perspective 01:43 Why Early AI Implementations Failed 03:28 Resilience, Risk-Taking & Persian Tea 05:23 Government Cycles & The Unpredictability of AI 07:45 AI’s Promise vs. Its Dangers in Healthcare 10:02 Expanding Supply: Elastic Labor Through AI 19:34 Insurance Complexities & Payment Structures 24:00 Regulatory Gaps & Government’s Role 31:26 When VCs Help—and When They Hurt 35:48 Building ‘Human + AI’ Infrastructure 40:57 Owning the Entire Care Continuum 45:03 Scaling to Millions with AI 49:57 Healthcare for the Many 56:51 Final Thoughts

From Billion-Dollar Hospitals to Rethinking Healthcare: Ali & Ihsan’s Inside Look

Join Ali Hashemi and Dr. Ihsan Almarzooqi as they reflect on a decade of building hospitals and healthcare ventures across the UAE. From deploying multi-billion-dirham investments to facing insurance pushback, they pull back the curtain on the challenges of innovation in a risk-averse environment. They discuss everything from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s unique model to why outcomes-based care still struggles to gain traction. If you’re a healthcare founder, investor, or industry insider, this conversation offers a raw, unfiltered look at what it really takes to transform healthcare in the region.00:46 The Maglis Culture & Bringing Community Insights to Healthcare 02:50 Building Hospitals & Billion-Dirham Projects: The Mubadala Era 05:28 Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi: Crown Jewel vs. Profit Goals 08:30 Copy-Paste Challenges of Overseas Hospital Affiliations 10:55 Risks, Ambition & Why You Can’t Innovate Without Building 14:00 Facing Insurance Pushback & Realities of Scaling Diabetes Care 20:05 Why Outcomes-Based Care Hasn’t Taken Off (Yet) 22:07 Closing Thoughts & Looking Ahead

AI Hype in Healthcare—Cutting Through the Noise with Naveen Rao

In this episode of Metabolic Majlis, we dive deep into the limits of AI in healthcare. Our conversation with Naveen unpacks how AI tools grant us access to massive amounts of information—but fall short on understanding the nuance and context of human interaction. We cut through the hype, share hard-won lessons from early mistakes, and discuss why human intuition remains irreplaceable in clinical practice. 00:41 Episode Context & Recap 01:06 Calling Out the BS in Healthcare AI 01:45 Wearing Multiple Hats: Investor, Builder, & User 02:13 Lessons from GluCare: Mistakes & Learnings 04:05 The AI Hype Cycle & Replacing Doctors 08:00 Building Better Tools with Human Intuition 11:00 The Future of AI in Clinical Practice