Sam has been a GP in Tower Hamlets since 1989 in the Bromley by Bow Partnership. The centre has over 100 projects under its roof supporting the wider determinants of health. The social prescribing delivered at the centre, is now part of a network of thousands across the country and the world. 

Sam is a member of BMA and RCGP Council and Vice President of the BMA. In 1999 he received an OBE for services to inner city primary care in 2006, The International Award of Excellence in Health Care and in 2015 a Knighthood for services to primary care. In 2022 he received the Albert Medal from the RSA. He is Vice President of the Queen's Nursing Institute. He is a trained woodcarver, day skipper, and speaks Norwegian. He trained originally as a cadet pilot in the RAF and lives with his wife and children in Tower Hamlets, East End of London.