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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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Wraparound Milwaukee (Milwaukee, WI)

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

Goal: Managed through the Child and Adolescent Services Branch of the Milwaukee County Mental Health Division in Wisconsin, Wraparound Milwaukee attempts to meet the mental heath, substance abuse, social service, and other supportive needs of the most complex youths in the Milwaukee community.

300-Mile Club (Louisville, KY)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Wellness & Lifestyle

Goal: The goal of this program is to encourage lifestyle changes that promote healthier living by promoting walking for exercise and educating participants about proper nutrition.

Achievement Mentoring (Piscataway, NJ)

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

Goal: The goal of this program is to improve academic performance, reduce substance abuse, and reduce school failure among middle and high school students.

Addressing Health Equity in Evaluation Efforts (Boston, MA)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Governance, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The Boston Public Health Commission worked to ensure their efforts were effective in reaching the populations experiencing obesity and tobacco-related health inequities.

Impact: Boston Public Health Commissions' strategic evaluation design allowed the department to make mid-course adjustments and enhanced their ability to contribute to the evidence-base regarding the influence of their initiative on advancing health equity.

AfterZone Initiative (Providence)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children

Goal: The initiative's mission was to create a citywide system to support and sustain high-quality after-school programs.

Aim High (San Francisco, Oakland, Marin, San Mateo counties)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Children, Teens, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The mission of Aim High is to inspire a life-long love of learning and instill a sense of community, opportunity, and respect so that students are prepared for success in school and life.

Asthma Home Visiting Program (San Francisco, CA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Respiratory Diseases, Children, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The Asthma Home Visiting Program aims to reduce asthma triggers present in the home.

Impact: Home visiting can help reduce asthma triggers in the home, decreasing symptoms, missed days of work or school, and emergency room visits and hospitalizations.

Bicycle Education Enhancement Program (BEEP) (Pennsylvania)

Filed under Good Idea, Art & Recreation / Sports Recreation & Parks, Children, Teens, Families, Urban

Goal: The goal of the program is to provide middle and high school students in the greater Philadelphia are with education and tools to become life-long cyclists.

Check and Connect (Minneapolis, MN)

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

Goal: The goal of Check and Connect is to encourage middle and high school students to stay in school.

Coalbed Methane Outreach Program (CMOP) (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Air

Goal: CMOP's goal is to reduce methane emissions from coalbeds by promoting the profitable recovery and use of coal mine methane.

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.