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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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SNAP Participation and Reduced Hospital Utilization

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

Goal: This study sought to examine whether Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation and benefit levels are associated with reduced subsequent hospital and emergency department utilization in low-income older adults

Southwest Indiana Project AWARE (Vanderburgh County and Warrick County, Indiana)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Teens, Urban

Goal: The Goals of Project Aware include:

1) Increase capacity of adults to respond to behavioral health issues of adolescents
2) Increase the mental health literacy of youth-interacting adults
3) Link adolescents with behavioral health issues to mental, emotional, and behavioral health assistance and services
4) Increase the number of collaborative partnerships with youth- serving community agencies/programs
5) Conduct outreach and engagement strategies with adolescents and their families/caregivers to increase awareness of and promote positive behavioral health

Impact: Collaboration and partnerships can help drive awareness of mental health issues and training adolescents in Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) can help spread awareness of mental health resources and referrals to professionals.

Special Infant Formula Distribution Program (Lancaster County, PA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health

Goal: The goal of this program is to provide affordable and easily accessible physician prescribed special formula to babies with special dietary needs due to health problems.

Standing Rock Indian Reservation Cancer Screening Program (Morton County, ND)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Women's Health, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of this screening program is to increase cancer education and screening among men and women of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

Stepping Up to Algebra (Santa Clara)

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

Goal: The program is designed to teach students the skills and knowledge required to complete Algebra I by the end of the eighth grade.

Stroke Family Support Organizer (Nottinghamshire, UK)

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

Goal: The goal of the Stroke Family Support Organizer program is to provide stroke patients and caregivers with information about supportive services.

Strong Seniors (Reno, KS)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Older Adults, Older Adults

Goal: The goal of the program is to promote health and prevent injury among seniors through a series of community-based strength training classes.

Student Talking About Non-violent Dating (STAND) (San Francisco, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Domestic Violence & Abuse, Teens, Urban

Goal: The goal of the program is to provide education, support, and training to middle and high school students in San Francisco on how to address sexual violence.

Summer Bridge (Marin)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Families

Goal: The program's goal is to help four- and five-year old children become better prepared for kindergarten.

Supporting Adolescents with Guidance and Employment (SAGE) (Durham County, NC)

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

Goal: The purpose of the first component, ROP, is to develop a strong sense of African-American cultural pride and ethnic identity in the participants and instill a sense of responsibility in their community, their peers, and themselves. The second component, the JTP experience, places youths in summer jobs at desirable work sites such as dentist offices, local museums, and recreational centers. The third component, JA, teaches how to develop and implement a small business.

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.