Advocates in Action

What stories lie hidden behind the numbers when patients face serious illnesses and try to access healthcare? Kate Gallagher from the Patient Advocate Foundation works to uncover these stories through detailed data collection and analysis. Her work reveals the everyday obstacles patients confront—from navigating insurance complexities to coping with the devastating financial strain known as financial toxicity.

In this episode, Kate shares how her team captures the realities of patient experiences and identifies the critical gaps that prevent equitable healthcare access. These insights not only illuminate the systemic challenges within our healthcare system but also guide efforts to improve policies, support services, and patient outcomes.

Tune in to hear how data, when combined with compassion and expertise, becomes a powerful force for change. Kate’s work highlights the vital role of research in transforming healthcare—helping to ensure that every patient receives the care and support they deserve, no matter the hurdles they face.

Visit our website to explore show notes, additional episodes and our mission.

Are you in a rural area and need help accessing care? Visit our National Financial Resource Directory

Finding the right treatment and support for a child with a rare disease is a challenge anywhere — but in rural Alaska, those challenges are often magnified by geography, limited resources, and the sheer distance between families and specialized care. With specialists few and far between, and travel requiring long, costly plane rides over hundreds of miles, many families face an uphill battle to get the care their children need and deserve.

Greta Goto and Mary Middleton first met while navigating these very struggles for their own children with special needs. Their shared experiences sparked a powerful partnership dedicated to supporting other families facing similar obstacles. Together, they work tirelessly to empower families by helping them locate and access quality care, while advocating for policies designed to address the unique and complex challenges of healthcare delivery in remote communities.

In this inspiring episode, hear how Greta and Mary’s collaboration is transforming lives — offering hope, guidance, and a collective voice for families who often feel isolated. Join us to learn about the real barriers rural families face and the innovative solutions being created to bridge the gaps and ensure no child is left without the care they need.

Explore information about the Alaska Highway system. 

Learn more about Stone Soup Group and the ways they support families in Alaska.

If you are located outside of Alaska and are looking for family to family support, please visit Family Voices and Parent Center Hub.

Michael Fratkin’s commitment to palliative care began with an important lesson his grandfather taught him when he was a boy. Today, he heads Resolution Care, bringing end of life care to rural communities in Northern, California. Fratkin talks about his commitment to caring for “people not patients,” and the need for a holistic approach to providing the highest level of palliative care to seriously ill people and their families. He is also a leader in telehealth, which has proved to be a very effective tool for reaching his patients in widely separated communities.



Are you in a rural area and need help accessing care? Visit our National Financial Resource Directory

Learn more about Resolution Care and their innovative approach using telehealth.

Connect with Michael Fratkin on social media!

Twitter: @MichaelDFratkin
Facebook: Resolution Care
LinkedIn: Michael Fratkin

Jessica Jones has faced a chronic illness most of her life, but that didn’t prepare her for her son’s rare heart disease. Becky Barnes lost her sister to lymphoma and has had more than her share of health problems. Both women have transformed their own experience into commitments to help others in their rural communities in Indiana and Kentucky. Jessica is working to address food insecurity during the pandemic, while Rebecca helps people understand and access health care benefits. Both women speak powerfully to impact that one person can have in changing a community.



Connect with us on social media!
Jessica Jones on Twitter @AdvocateGirly
Rebecca Barnes on Twitter @LmtBarnes

Beth Madison wasn’t surprised when she heard the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis. Her family had a strong history of this potentially crippling condition. She was, however, determined to carry on with her life and career as a science professor. She soon learned that her local doctors were unable to provide the advanced, aggressive treatment she needs, Instead of settling for those limited options, Beth used her skills to locate a practice able to give her the care she requires, and regularly makes the eight hour journey to Alabama and back to her rural home in Jackson, Tennessee, Beth also sees her illness as an opportunity to dig deeper into herself and find her reserves of courage, hope and faith.

Visit our website to explore show notes, additional episodes and our mission.

Do you need help with transportation to your doctor's visit? Visit our National Financial Resource Directory

Beth volunteers for Global Healthy Living Foundation. Learn about their support program for patients.

Welcome to Advocates in Action, a podcast created by the Patient Advocate Foundation, a non-profit that develops initiatives promoting equitable access to affordable quality health care through policy action and partnerships. Our primary objective is to prioritize the patient voice in health system delivery reform to achieve person-centered care. We are dedicated to amplifying the powerful stories of individuals and the collective needs of various communities across the country. 

In our first season we explore rural health in the United States. We feature patients, advocates and providers who are developing innovative, effective approaches to improving health care in their communities.On today’s episode we speak with Executive Vice President for Patient Advocacy and Engagement Gwen Darien. Listen as we introduce the mission of our organization, vision for this podcast and plans for our first season.