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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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Open Wide (Connecticut)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Oral Health, Children, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of the program is to train non-dental health and childcare professionals in dental disease screening and dental referrals for children.

Opportunity Chicago (Chicago, IL)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Adults

Goal: Opportunity Chicago's goal was to identify employment barriers within the system and to reduce those barriers by creating processes that would result in a smoother and more streamlined path to employment for CHA residents.

Impact: Of the 6,743 participants in an Opportunity Chicago program between 2006 and 2010, 5,185 (77%) were employed by the end of the project. Fifty-four percent retained employment for two or more years. Fifty-nine percent of participants saw an increase in quarterly earnings.

Osteofit (Canada)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Older Adults, Adults

Goal: To reduce and prevent falls in people with osteoporosis and osteopenia through exercise and education.

Parent Child Development Center

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Families

Goal: The goal of this program is to foster positive family relationships.

Parent to Parent Program (Marin, Napa, Solano and Sonoma, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Disabilities, Children, Families

Goal: The program's mission is to empower families of children with special needs to understand and access the systems that serve them.

Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Maine (Maine)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens, Adults

Goal: The mission of the Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Maine is to reduce death and disability due to tobacco use.

Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (USA)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants

Goal: The goal of PESP is to reduce the health and environmental risks associated with pesticide use.

Play Streets with Strategic Alliance for Health (SaFH) (East Harlem and South Bronx, NY)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: To promote physical activity and healthy eating in resource-poor neighborhoods.

Preventive Treatment Program (Montreal, Quebec)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Children, Urban

Goal: The goal of this program is to reduce short- and long-term antisocial behavior.

Pride Alliance Network (Mendocino and Lake Counties, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Wellness & Lifestyle, Children, Teens, Adults

Goal: The mission of the Pride Alliance Network is to promote and support equality and acceptance for all people without regard to sexual orientation or gender identity.

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.