Customized Training and Facilitation That Engages and Educates
Background
The Alzheimer’s Association Los Angeles is a leading nonprofit organization providing support, education, and advocacy for individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s and other dementias. With a strong commitment to cultural humility, equity in healthcare access, and community-centered care,the organization recognizes the responsibility of how stories are told—whether from clients, caregivers, staff, or partners.
As part of an ongoing professional development series, Alzheimer’s Los Angeles sought a workshop that would help their staff explore the ethics of storytelling in a nonprofit health services context. The team turned to Nexus PR to design and deliver a custom version of their acclaimed course, The Art of Ethical Storytelling, originally developed for NTEN’s Digital Equity Certification Program.
The Challenge
The Alzheimer’s Association Los Angeles staff works across diverse departments—including programs, outreach, communications,and fundraising. Many staff engage directly with families and caregivers, while others craft narratives for grants, reports, or digital campaigns. The training needed to:
- Be accessible and relevant to both direct service and administrative staff
- Acknowledge the unique sensitivities involved in sharing health-related and personal stories
- Offer practical frameworks and ethical tools staff could apply immediately
- Foster a sense of shared responsibility and alignment around storytelling values
Solution: A Custom Workshop Grounded in Values
Nexus PR worked closely with the Alzheimer’s Association Los Angeles leadership team to understand organizational goals, team dynamics, and real-world scenarios. The result was a 90-minute interactive virtual workshop that maintained the integrity of the original Art of Ethical Storytelling course while tailoring content for a healthcare and memory-care context.
Key learning objectives included:
- Understanding power dynamics in nonprofit storytelling
- Recognizing how language, framing, and imagery can either uplift or unintentionally harm
- Building consent-driven storytelling practices, especially when cognitive ability may be diminished
- Centering dignity, agency, and cultural context when collecting or sharing stories
- Shifting from savior narratives to partnership-based communication
The session featured:
- Case studies drawn from Alzheimer’s Association Los Angeles’ daily work
- Small group breakouts to reflect on past and future storytelling practices
- A values alignment activity to co-create shared principles for ethical communications
- A take-home worksheet with prompts for evaluating story use internally and externally
Results & Impact
More than 45 staff members participated live in the virtual training, hosted during a quarterly all-staff meeting. Feedback highlighted that the session was both thought-provoking and highly applicable.
Key outcomes included:
- Heightened awareness of ethical issues in nonprofit health storytelling
- Increased cross-departmental dialogue about story collection protocols
- Renewed commitment to sharing client and caregiver stories with dignity
- Integration of new consent processes into communications workflows
- Stronger collaboration between program and marketing staff
Staff particularly valued reflecting on difficult but essential questions, such as:
“How do we speak on someone’s behalf when they can’t advocate for themselves?”
“What’s the difference between highlighting need versus reinforcing stigma?”
“How do we build trust before we ask for someone’s story?”
