Telling the Story of a System

Services
- Communications Strategy
- Institutional Messaging
- Message Training
How do you get 16,000 people across a dozen organizations and four states to align behind a shared message?
That was the communications challenge facing Dartmouth Health leaders as they grew their healthcare system into one of the largest in New England. Uniting stakeholders across a growing network of hospitals, clinics, and specialty programs required more than a new name or visual identity—it demanded a clear, compelling messaging strategy that could foster alignment while honoring the unique character of each member organization.
The foundation for that system-wide effort began with a project we called One Voice. In 2019, Libretto partnered with Cheshire Medical Center in Keene, New Hampshire, to support the hospital’s integration into the Dartmouth Health system. As one of the network’s newest members at the time, Cheshire needed to clarify its role within a larger, evolving organization. Our task was to help preserve the hospital’s distinct identity while articulating its connection to the system’s mission, values, and strategic goals.
The success of that engagement laid the groundwork for something far greater. As Dartmouth Health continued to grow—adding new hospitals and programs across New Hampshire and Vermont—the organization recognized the need for a unified communications platform that could scale. Leadership understood that building a cohesive brand wasn’t just about a new logo or tagline; it required intentional, inclusive storytelling rooted in authenticity. Libretto crafted a new layer of institutional messaging: the narrative infrastructure that gave voice to Dartmouth Health’s brand pillars and clearly communicated its mission, values, and vision.
We worked directly with seven member hospitals, as well as organizations like the system’s visiting nurse and hospice program, to develop custom messaging platforms that would achieve that goal. Our approach was deliberately ground-up. Through interviews and discovery sessions with more than 300 staff members—from physicians and nurses to administrators and facilities staff—we surfaced the qualities that made each organization essential to its community and vital to the system as a whole. Each messaging platform included a core positioning statement, messages aligned with Dartmouth Health’s brand pillars, institution-specific proof points, and audience-specific adaptations.
This work supported the official launch of Dartmouth Health’s new identity in 2022 and continues today as the system welcomes new members and broadens its regional impact. To date, Libretto has delivered 15 trainings to more than 250 participants, equipping leaders at all levels to communicate with clarity and confidence—both internally and externally—during a period of rapid change in rural healthcare.
By emphasizing authenticity, inclusion, and shared purpose, this engagement shows how a large, integrated health system can grow while honoring the identity and voice of each of its members. As more rural communities across the country look to consolidate hospitals and clinics to deliver more integrated, sustainable care, Libretto can help ensure that those transitions are supported by messaging strategies that preserve local identities at the same time that organizations align behind a shared mission.