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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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Women Involved in Life Learning from Other Women (WILLOW) (various cities in Alabama and Georgia)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Women's Health, Adults, Women, Urban

Goal: The goal of the WILLOW intervention is to provide women living with HIV/AIDS with the skills and education needed to support safer sexual decisions.

Impact: The WILLOW program succeeded in reducing the number of reported episodes of unprotected vaginal intercourse, increasing the use of condoms and condom self-efficacy, decreasing the incidence of bacterial infections (chlamydia and gonorrhea), and improving HIV knowledge.

Women On the Move through Activity And Nutrition (WOMAN) Study (Pittsburgh)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Women

Goal: The goal of the WOMAN Study is to reduce the progression of subclinical atherosclerosis by reducing weight and waist circumference through dietary changes and physical activity.

Women's Lifestyle Heart Trial (Eugene, OR)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Heart Disease & Stroke, Women

Goal: The goal of the Women's Lifestyle Heart Trial is to reduce cardiovascular risk factors among postmenopausal women with coronary heart disease through lifestyle changes.

Worcester Area Trial for Counseling in Hyperlipidemia (WATCH) (Massachusetts)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Adults

Goal: To decrease total and saturated fat intake, serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, and body weight.

Impact: The dietitian-delivered intervention effectively improved the care of patients with hyperlipidemia.

Workplace Exercise Health Promotion Plan (Oita, Japan)

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Adults, Men

Goal: The goal of this exercise program was to reduce the incidence of diseases related to lifestyle, such as cerebrovascular diseases and ischemic heart diseases, and to preserve and promote workers' health.

Impact: The exercise program proved to be effective in increasing adaptive walking speed and in lowering waist to hip ratio.

Workplace Solutions (USA)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Cancer, Adults

Goal: The American Cancer Society's Workplace Solutions assists employers in implementing evidence-based health interventions that reduce risk factors for cancer by promoting healthy lifestyle choices.

Wright County Public Health Wellness On Wheels Program (Wright County, MN)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality

Goal: The objectives of WOW are to promote optimal health, to reduce behavioral risks and to promote early detection and improved management of health problems and risks.

Year Up

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Economy, Adults

Goal: Year Up's mission is to close the Opportunity Divide by ensuring that young adults gain the skills, experiences, and support that will empower them to reach their potential through careers and higher education.

Impact: These approaches tend to be intensive and comprehensive, address psycho-social skills as well as occupation-specific competencies, provide opportunities for work-based learning, engage employers, incorporate evidence-based practices, and emphasize continuous improvement.

YMCA Diabetes Support Group (Jacksonville, FL)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Diabetes, Adults, Urban

Goal: The Diabetes Support Group provides ongoing education and support to those living with, at risk for, or affected by diabetes in the community.

YMCA's Diabetes Prevention Program (Northeast Florida counties)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Diabetes, Adults

Goal: The goal is for participants to lose seven percent of their body weight and increase their physical activity to 150 minutes per week in order to reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

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.