In rural communities, the standard metrics often miss what matters most. So how do health organizations build trust and make the case for their work when the data tells an incomplete story? In this episode, I sit down with Chelsey Canavan, my client at the Center for Advancing Rural Health Equity at Dartmouth, to explore how storytelling has become central to their work. We discuss why rural health settings demand different approaches, demystify storytelling for health and justice orgs, and trust building through story. Whether you work in health equity, rural health, or any setting where numbers alone can't capture impact, this conversation offers a grounded look at what becomes possible when organizations learn to lead with story.

In this episode:

• Why traditional data often fails rural health contexts
• Making storytelling accessible for data-driven teams
• Story as a trust-building practice, not just a communications tactic
• Lessons from three years of partnership

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Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

What if the best strategic mind for your organization isn't the one with the sharpest certainty—but the one most comfortable in the unknown? This episode explores why doula skills are strategy superpowers, and why the work of birth and the work of story are fundamentally the same.

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Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

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Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

Most health and justice organizations still treat storytelling as a comms

task—something you gather for a campaign or report. But when narrative becomes

part of the organizational body, everything shifts.

In this episode, we explore the real Before → After transformation that happens when

organizations start to deeply listen, center lived experience, and build story into their

strategic infrastructure.

We cover:

• Increased health-seeking behaviors
• Stronger and more responsive programs
• Higher staff retention and satisfaction
• Deeper patient–provider connection
• A powerful bank of evergreen advocacy tools
• Expanded funding opportunities driven by community story

This episode is a guide to imagining what becomes possible when your organization

moves from extractive storytelling to relational narrative strategy.

🔗 Stay Connected

Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

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Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

Today’s guest is Dorian Johnson — a health communicator, strategist, and storyteller

whose work challenges the traditional, top-down ways public health has been taught

to “message” to communities. Instead, Dorian pushes us to see communication as

relationship, as accountability, and as a form of practice that must be rooted in

listening.

Together, we explore:

• What traditional health communications gets wrong
• Storytelling as a tool for connection across power
• Community engagement that is real—not performative
• Doing communications differently
• The future of public health communications

This conversation is warm, honest, and deeply grounded. If your organization is

wrestling with trust, relevance, or community connection—this episode will help you

rethink what’s possible.

🔗 Stay Connected

Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

Let's connect on LinkedIn

Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

We’re taught to simplify things, but what if simplicity in our work creates a false reality? In this episode, we explore how embracing complexity leads to more effective, human-centered strategy. Learn why storytelling isn’t just a communication tool—it’s how we return to truth, design from reality, and create programs that actually serve.

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Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

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Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

Bridges and roads aren’t the only infrastructure that matters. In this episode, we unpack how lasting health and justice are built through relationships, trust, and story. Hit play to explore the concept of “relational infrastructure,” the role of community wisdom in system design, and how organizations can shift from service delivery to true ecosystem building.

🔗 Stay Connected

Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

Let's connect on LinkedIn

Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

From extraction to hero narratives, explore the most common storytelling

mistakes organizations make—and the practices that build trust instead of eroding it.

🔗 Stay Connected

Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

Let's connect on LinkedIn

Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com

Learn how to integrate storytelling into existing operations to avoid overwhelm, increase impact, and make strategy sustainable—plus a look inside my Story Lab Sessions.

🔗 Stay Connected

Take the Quiz → Discover where your organization most needs storytelling

Let's connect on LinkedIn

Lean more about how we can work together at https://madisonmurphybarney.com/entangled-health

Reach out with questions and inquiries at mbarney@entangledhealth.com