“If we left our community health centres tomorrow, would the people actually be better off?”
This was the challenging question posed by Professor Lionel Green-Thompson, Dean of the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Faculty of Health Sciences, during his recent inaugural lecture, “From village to the globe: reflections on a journey in social accountability.” Celebrating his ascent to full professor, the event served as a clarion call for a fundamental shift in how healthcare institutions interact with the communities they serve.
Redefining Social Accountability
Prof. Green-Thompson argued that “social accountability” is a frequently misunderstood concept. It is not merely a box-ticking exercise for institutions to align their research and teaching with community needs. Instead, he defined it as a process of co-creation.
To achieve true accountability, he proposed that institutions must operate within a “partnership pentagram”—a collaborative cycle involving:
- Policymakers & Health Administrators
- Health Professionals
- Academic Institutions
- The Communities themselves
The Ubuntu Heuristic
Perhaps the most profound takeaway from his lecture—and his own doctoral research—was the role of Ubuntu in medical practice. When interviewing community members about what they truly need from their doctors, they did not speak in academic jargon. They spoke of the spirit of Ubuntu.
“If you’re a doctor who has ubuntu, you would know how to treat me. Because in that spirit of ubuntu, you would know that I am a real person,” he explained.
For Green-Thompson, Ubuntu is not just a philosophy; it is a heuristic—a practical tool that health professionals should use to judge their own behaviors and responses within the specific contexts of the people they serve. Whether in primary care or specialized medicine, accountability means that a doctor’s professional aims are defined directly by the society they serve.
Compassion, Humility, and Systemic Change
Reflecting on the lessons learned during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Prof. Green-Thompson urged his colleagues to deepen their commitment to three core pillars:
- Compassion: Engaging deeply with the real-world needs of the community rather than assuming what those needs are.
- Humility: Fostering truly equal partnerships between the university, government agencies, and community members.
- Justice: Moving beyond mere “responsiveness” to achieve lasting, systemic change.
As the evening concluded, the sentiment was clear: the future of healthcare education depends on our ability to listen with compassion, walk with humility, and act with justice. By embedding the spirit of Ubuntu into the fabric of our institutions, we can ensure that our presence in communities is not just a service, but a meaningful partnership that truly improves lives.
