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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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Reconciliation Services Depression and Trauma Therapy Services (Kansas City/Jackson/Missouri)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Adults, Women, Men, Urban

Goal: The mission of Reconciliation Services is to cultivate a community seeking reconciliation to transform Troost from a dividing line into a gathering place, revealing the strength of all. Our mental health services are at the heart of how we strive to help clients see their own strength and work towards being reconciled to their own health and well-being.

Impact: Over the past three years, our therapy program participants reported a 71 percent decrease for depression and 79 percent decrease for PTSD.

RehabCenter.net

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use

Goal: To equip people with the best information, resources, and tools to overcome addiction and lead a lifelong recovery.

Renewal House (Western Connecticut region)

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

Goal: The goal of renewal house is to reduce homelessness of older individuals in Greater Danbury Area, CT, by providing safe, secure housing, renewing a sense of hope, reinforcing self-worth and restoring dignity and confidence.

Resident and Community Services (Omaha, NE)

Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Housing & Homes

Goal: The Omaha Housing Authority's goal is to provide quality housing for those who receive assistance through rental and homeownership programs.

Responsive Classroom

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / School Environment, Children

Goal: The approach was developed with the goals of increasing student investment, responsibility, and learning and decreasing problem behaviors.

Rethink Your Drink / Choose Healthy Drinks (San Francisco Bay Area)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Diabetes, Children, Teens, Adults, Families

Goal: The goal of the Rethink your Drink campaign is to prevent chronic diseases like obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease by reducing sugary drink consumption.

Impact: Rethink your Drink is increasing public awareness of the health effects of consuming sugary beverages.

Rhode Island’s Health Equity Zones: Addressing Local Problems with Local Solutions

Filed under Good Idea, Health

Goal: The goal of the program was to recognize and address the diversity of local health disparities by marshaling local community involvement in the place-based Health Equity Zones.

Impact: The framework established through the Health Equity Zones allows for the continued collaboration between governmental public health entities and stakeholders in the community to address health disparities.

Rock and Wrap It Up! (USA)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Civic Engagement

Goal: The goal of Rock and Wrap It Up! is to collect leftover food from large events and donate it to local agencies.

Roots of Empathy (Canada)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children

Goal: The program has five main goals: foster the development of empathy; develop emotional literacy; reduce levels of bullying, aggression and violence, and promote children's pro-social behaviors; increase knowledge of human development, learning, and infant safety; and prepare students for responsible citizenship and responsive parenting.

Routz (San Francisco, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Urban

Goal: To provide housing to homeless youth aged 18 to 24 and provide comprehensive behavioral health services.

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.