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.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education, Adults, Urban
Goal: Project QUEST strengthens the economy and transforms lives by preparing individuals for in-demand, living wage careers.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Adults
Goal: The goal of Project ReConnect is to enable HIV-positive people to explore career, educational, and volunteer activities and to de-stigmatize HIV through education and advocacy.
Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants
Goal: The goal of Project SWAT is to reduce the population of mosquitoes potentially carrying West Nile Virus by applying larvicide to common breeding habitats.
Filed under Good Idea, Education / Educational Attainment
Goal: To provide a freely-available source of public health expertise in which seasoned professionals can share their wealth of professional expertise with those interested in learning about Public Health and potential career options.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Teens, Urban
Goal: The goal of this strategy is to reduce homicide in Richmond, California.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Urban
Goal: The goal of the Runaway Intervention Program is to prevent or reduce risky behaviors of young runaway girls that have been sexually abused or exploited in order to return participants to a healthy developmental trajectory.
Impact: This program is a promising intervention for restoring sexually abused runaway girls to a healthy developmental trajectory, with particular benefit to those who are at the highest risk.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Adults, Rural
Goal: The goal of the Rural Energy for America Program is to increase clean energy production, efficiency savings, economic activity, and new jobs in rural areas.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Teens, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: To combat the epidemic of violence among Baltimore’s youth and support traditional public safety strategies using a combination of public health and human service models to reduce violence.
Impact: It was estimated that the program was associated with 5.4 fewer homicide incidents and 34.6 fewer nonfatal shooting incidents during 112 cumulative months of intervention post observations.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Family Planning, Teens
Goal: The goal of the Safer Choices program is to reduce the number of students engaging in unprotected sexual intercourse.
Impact: The program reduced the frequency of intercourse without a condom, reduced the number of sexual partners with whom students had intercourse without a condom, and increased use of condoms and other protection against pregnancy at last intercourse.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Women, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: SAHARA is a computer-based HIV intervention that targets African American women to promote healthy sexual behaviors to reduce the risk of HIV transmission.
Impact: These findings which demonstrate major improvements in HIV-preventive behaviors suggest that SAHARA is an effective evidence-based promising practice; it is inexpensive and only requires two hours.