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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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HOPE Collaborative (Oakland)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Urban

Goal: HOPE's mission is to create fundamental and sustainable environmental changes that will significantly improve the health and wellness of Oakland residents.

Housing and the Role of Hospitals (Chicago, IL)

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

Goal: The goal was to create a housing program as one way to respond to chronic homelessness and associated health concerns.

Increasing Age-Appropriate Immunization Rates for Children in Butler County and Surrounding Area (Butler County, KS)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Children, Rural

Goal: The goal of this program was to increase immunization rates in the Butler County area.

Impact: Immunization rates increased from 53.2% to 72.4% and parents reported a better understanding of the importance of timely vaccinations.

Infant Health and Development Program

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Children

Goal: The goal of this program was to reduce health and developmental problems for low-birth-weight and premature infants.

Kalihi Valley Nature Park and Active Living Center (Honolulu, HI)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Wellness & Lifestyle

Goal: The goal of this program is to create a connection to nature, gardening and hiking for the Kalihi valley's urban residents.

KidzLit and KidzMath (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Children

Goal: These programs aim to improve both academic and interpersonal skills in elementary school aged children.

Kit for New Parents (California)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Families

Goal: The initiative's mission is to provide parenting education to new parents throughout California.

Medical-Legal Partnerships: Investing in Social Services as a Core Strategy for Healthcare (New York City)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Children, Teens, Adults, Urban

Goal: New York City LegalHealth is a fruitful partnership that operates in 11 clinics of the city's public hospitals. One example is by supporting individuals in tenant-landlord disputes.

Impact: With an average of $225 per case, LegalHealth was able to effectively demand fixes in asthma patients' living conditions. This impact directly resulted in a 90% drop in emergency room visits and hospital admissions for this asthma patient group.

New Beginnings for Children of Divorce (Tempe, AZ)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Teens, Adults, Women, Men, Families

Goal: A 10-session group program, with two individual sessions, for divorced mothers and their children to promote resilience in children after parental divorce.

Impact: At the fifteen-year followup, NBP reduced the incidence of internalizing disorders for females and males and substance-related disorders and substance use for males.

New Jersey "Save our Smiles" Fluoride Mouthrinse Program (New Jersey)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Oral Health, Children

Goal: The goal of the New Jersey Department of Health's voluntary fluoride mouth rinse program, "Save Our Smiles" is to improve the oral health status of high need/risk children residing in areas where the water is not optimally fluoridated.

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.