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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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In2Books (Virtual Program)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Literacy, Children

Goal: The goal of In2Books is to promote reading, writing, and critical thinking skills in students grades three through five through partnership with a pen pal, and provide teachers with a structured curriculum designed to enhance their students' learning experiences.

Kahiau Program (Honolulu, HI)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Housing & Homes, Children, Older Adults, Families

Goal: The Kahiau Program addresses the non-medical needs of individuals and families in the community served by Castle Medical Center.

Kentucky Adolescent Tobacco Prevention Project (Lexington, KY)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Children, Teens, Rural

Goal: The goal of this program is to prevent tobacco use among middle school students who live in tobacco-producing areas.

Know Your Body

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Teens

Goal: The goal of KYB is to teach students the necessary knowledge, attitudes, skills, and experience to practice positive health behaviors and reduce their risk of future illness.

Impact: Studies suggest that the program had a favorable impact on many risk factors, such as systolic and diastolic pressures, HDL cholesterol, ratio of total to HDL cholesterol, fitness (postexercise pulse recovery rate), and smoking.

Latino Education and Prevention Initiative (Clark County, NV)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of this program is to increase awareness about the hazards of secondhand smoke within the adult Hispanic/Latino community using a culturally and linguistically appropriate intervention.

Linking Education, Activity, and Food (LEAF): Fiscal Impact Report (California)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Teens

Goal: The goal of the study was to conduct a multi-component, cross-site evaluation of California's LEAF program. The report analyzes the fiscal impacts experienced by the 16 LEAF schools as a result of the implementation of SB 19/56.

Low Literacy Intervention to Promote Discussion of Prostate Cancer (Atlanta, GA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Men

Goal: To educate men over the age of 45 about prostate cancer and to increase prostate cancer screening in order to reduce the incidence of prostate cancer.

Maternal and Child Behavioral Health Pilot Project (King County, WA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Children, Women, Urban

Goal: The goal of the Maternal and Child Behavioral Health Pilot Project is to prevent and treat common mental health disorders in low-income pregnant women, mothers, and their children.

Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing (Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New Y)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Economy / Housing & Homes, Children, Teens, Adults, Rural

Goal: The goal of MTO was to impact behavior and lifestyle choices by changing neighborhood environments.

My Mouth Matters (England)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Oral Health, Children

Goal: The goal of My Mouth Matters was to raise dental health awareness, improve knowledge, and reduce plaque.

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.