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Promising Practices

The Promising Practices database informs professionals and community members about documented approaches to improving community health and quality of life.

The ultimate goal is to support the systematic adoption, implementation, and evaluation of successful programs, practices, and policy changes. The database provides carefully reviewed, documented, and ranked practices that range from good ideas to evidence-based practices.
Learn more about the ranking methodology.

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Step-by-Step Approach to Sustain a Community Health Worker Intervention (Philadelphia, PA)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality

Goal: To find, explore, and implement a sustainable funding stream for community-based healthcare interventions.

Strengthening Families Program/Strengthening Hawaii Families (Hawaii)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Social Environment, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The program aims to reduce substance abuse risk factors and improve relationships in high-risk families.

Tai Chi -- Moving for Better Balance

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Older Adults, Older Adults

Goal: To use tai chi exercise to improve balance and decrease incidence of falls among older adults.

Impact: The program shows that ta chi can significantly improve health-related outcome measures in older adults and such a program can be practically and effectively implemented and maintained in community settings.

The Character Effect: A Universal Social-Emotional Learning Program for Elementary School Students (Greater Cincinnati Area (SW OH, Northern KY))

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education, Children, Urban

Goal: The goal of The Character Effect is to foster the development of students’ social-emotional skills, improving their behavior and readiness to learn in the classroom.

The Connect Project (USA)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Teens, Adults

Goal: The Connect Project is a community-based youth suicide prevention program that works to develop a shared knowledge and understanding of suicide prevention within a community.

The Living Room of the Community Health Center of LaGrange (LaGrange, IL)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Urban

Goal: To reduce the number of individuals with mental illness who use the ER, to help individuals achieve long-term recovery, and to develop a community peer-based support network.

Impact: The Living Room is a comfortable, non-clinical space that offers an alternative to hospital emergency rooms. The program in LaGrange, Illinois hopes to decrease unnecessary hospitalizations.

The Louisiana Recovery Authority (Louisiana)

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment

Goal: The Louisiana Recovery Authority is working with Governor Blanco to plan for Louisiana's future, coordinate across jurisdictions, support community recovery and resurgence, and ensure integrity and effectiveness. Working in collaboration with local, state and federal agencies, the authority is addressing short-term recovery needs while simultaneously guiding the long-term planning process.

The Westside Prevention Project Low Rider Bike Club (San Bernardino, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Urban

Goal: The goal of this program is to educate high-risk youth in San Bernardino about issues such as gangs, violence, and substance abuse. The program encourages participation by appealing to the low rider bike subculture, which neighborhood teens readily relate to.

Tribal Motor Vehicle Injury Prevention Programs (Arizona and Wisconsin)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Public Safety, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of tribal motor vehicle injury prevention programs is to reduce disparities in rates of motor vehicle-related injuries and deaths.

Impact: Projects to increase motor vehicle safety on tribal reservations increased seat belt use among drivers, increased use of child safety seats, and decreased motor vehicle crashes.

Uniting for Solutions Beyond Shelter (New York, NY)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Housing & Homes, Urban

Goal: The goals of Uniting for Solutions Beyond Shelter are:
- To reduce street homelessness and the shelter population by two-thirds in five years.
- To eliminate chronic, or long-term, homelessness on City streets and shelters in five years.

The plan's objectives include initiatives to better serve individuals and families who are at-risk of homelessness or who become homeless, as well as ensure that the City and its citizens are maximizing public resources. The plan has nine points - encompassing 60 initiatives - that seek to:

- Overcome street homelessness
- Prevent homelessness
- Coordinate discharge planning
- Coordinate city services and benefits
- Minimize disruption to homeless families and children
- Minimize duration of homelessness
- Shift resources into preferred solutions
- Provide resources for vulnerable populations to access and afford housing
- Measure progress, evaluate success, and invest in continuous quality improvement.

An Effective Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success and/or promise in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures of improvement in outcome of interest (i.e. increase in voter registration, not just delivery of voter registration drive) and/ or the outcome measure is increased or improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant.

A Good Idea meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program funding source, program implementation steps and outcomes.
  2. The program evaluation is limited to descriptive measure(s) of success/accomplishment (i.e., program participation rates, number of services/education sessions/radio messages provided). Note: oftentimes, the program has been newly implemented and a program evaluation has not yet been conducted. Programs that have not yet been evaluated, but which show promise in improving health or quality of life, are classified as Good Ideas until an evaluation is conducted.

An Evidence-Based Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures showing improvement in the outcome(s) of interest after the implementation of the program (i.e. increase in smoking cessation, not just the delivery of a smoking cessation program). The outcome measure(s) is/are compared at relevant time periods before and after the intervention or program implementation. Alternatively, the evaluation study compares the outcome(s) between an intervention group and an appropriate control group.
  3. The study is of peer-review quality and presents numbers in a scientific manner; measurements of precision and reliability are included (e.g. confidence intervals, standard errors), results from statistical tests show a significant difference or change in the outcome measure(s), and relevant point estimates and p-values are presented. Note: if the results from an evaluation of a program are presented in a scientific manner and the outcome measure is improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant, the practice is classified as effective and not evidence-based.