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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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WISEWOMAN Michigan (Lansing, MI)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Cancer, Women

Goal: The goal of this program is to reduce barriers to exercise and increase the likelihood that people will engage in physical activity.

WomenVenture (Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Women, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: WomenVenture helps women of all ages, cultures, races and income levels achieve economic success.

Work Advancement and Support Center (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Families

Goal: The goal of the work Advancement and Support Center is to provide services to help low-wage workers increase their family income and well-being through the use of existing work supports.

Work Resource Center High School/High Tech Program (Cincinnati, OH)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Educational Attainment, Children, Teens

Goal: The objective of this program is for students to complete high school and be prepared to enter postsecondary education or employment.

Workplace Implementation of Act in Time (Montana)

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

Goal: The goal of the Act in Time campaign is to increase awareness to the signs and symptoms of heart attack and the need to call 911 for emergency medical services.

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.

Youth with Disabilities Demonstration Project (Seattle, WA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment

Goal: The overall objective of the project was to identify and provide additional support and services to those youth, ages 14-21 enrolled in WIA-supported youth programs with mental health care needs.

Youth Work Together to Improve Community Conditions

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Built Environment

Goal: The goal of this initiative was to pinpoint community conditions that were detrimental to health in the Planada, California community.

Impact: The Student Education Empowerment Development Squad (SEEDS), with the help of the Central California Regional Obesity Prevention Program (CCROPP), addressed community issues through a youth-led process using Prevention Institute’s Tool for Health and Resilience in Vulnerable Environments (THRIVE).

YouthBuild McLean County (McLean County, IL)

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

Goal: The McLean County program's mission is "to offer young people a once in a lifetime opportunity to build their futures and their communities through education, leadership development, job training, and the rehabilitation and production of affordable housing, while keeping a profound respect for and a commitment to real partnership with youth."

Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore is to influence the final version of Baltimore’s new zoning code by informing stakeholders and decision-makers about the new zoning code’s potential to create healthy communities and decrease health disparities, with an emphasis on preventing obesity and crime.

Impact: Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore is an HIA of the Baltimore zoning code rewrite in order to maximize the potential to create healthier communities. Since publication, Baltimore has revised its zoning code to incorporate dispersal standards and other strategies related to placement of alcohol outlets.

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.
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