Design Fellow - Health Communication & Storytelling - Remote · 10+ hours/week minimum · 3-month minimum, renewable

Healthful Stories is a Seattle-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that conducts in-depth interviews with people living with chronic and complex health conditions. We exist to document the real patient journey: the delays, the barriers, and the turning points in a way that will have the greatest impact on those living with similar illnesses. Our interviews are structured and informational, not just inspirational. We don't ask people how they stay positive. We ask what happened, because it's the information, decisions, and resources that can help others on their own journeys.

We're launching a Design Fellowship for someone who wants to bring real design craft to our mission through our website, outreach materials, and through visual communication that makes complex, sensitive health experiences clearer, more human, and more actionable. This work sits at the intersection of design and health communication: the same territory as graphic medicine, health literacy design, and patient-experience visual storytelling, where visuals do more than decorate, they help people understand and connect with information that matters to their lives. This is a Fellow-tier role: it requires a minimum of 10 hours per week, because brand systems, templates, and donor and advocacy materials need consistency to build well. In exchange, you get real design ownership across a growing organization, not a single isolated project.

As our Design Fellow, you will build the visual foundation that our Social Media Managers, Fundraisers, Health Policy & Coalition Managers, and HEART Fellows all rely on: brand identity, templates, and polished materials that communicate patient experience with clarity and integrity.

Responsibilities include:

• Developing and documenting a cohesive brand identity system (visual style, templates, guidelines) for Healthful Stories' public-facing materials
• Designing website pages and social media templates, donor communications materials (including our case for support), and policy one-pagers and decks
• Translating interview excerpts and patient narratives into visual formats that build understanding and empathy without sensationalizing — think infographics, narrative graphics, or illustrated story excerpts
• Creating visual assets to support the HEART Fellows program and volunteer recruitment materials
• Collaborating with our Social Media Manager, Fundraiser, and Executive Director to keep materials aligned with active campaigns and priorities
• Coordinating with our WordPress Webmaster on visual assets for the website
• Maintaining a shared design asset library so future volunteers can use templates consistently

You bring:

• A strong portfolio demonstrating brand identity, template systems, and/or marketing collateral design
• Respectful judgment when working with sensitive health narratives, including the ability to preserve context and avoid visual choices that stigmatize, oversimplify, or sensationalize patient experiences.
• Proficiency in tools such as Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, or Canva at a professional level
• Ability to genuinely commit 10+ hours per week for a minimum of three months — this role is not a good fit for sporadic availability
• Comfort working across multiple stakeholders and priorities in a small, fast-moving nonprofit
• Strong communication skills and ability to translate written direction and sensitive subject matter into visual solutions independently
• Background or interest in health communication design, graphic medicine, medical illustration, or health literacy-focused design is a strong plus, though not required — we're equally glad to hear from strong generalist designers who want to grow into this space

What you'll gain: Real design ownership across an entire organization's visual identity, not a single logo or one-off project — plus direct, hands-on experience in the specific and growing niche of health communication design. A substantial portfolio body of work spanning brand systems, donor materials, patient-narrative visual storytelling, and advocacy collateral. Direct collaboration with our Executive Director and cross-functional visibility into how a nonprofit's programs, fundraising, and advocacy fit together. This is a strong credential for careers in nonprofit design, health communication, brand strategy, or health-focused UX and service design.