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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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Positive Youth Development Program (New Haven, CT)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Teens

Goal: To increase social competence and decrease substance abuse among sixth and seventh grade students.

POSSE (Prevent Ongoing Spread of STDs Everywhere) (Forsyth County, NC)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of the POSSE program is to increase STD awareness, prevention skills, and testing among racial and ethnic minorities.

Project A.S.K. (Adolescents Seeking Knowledge) (Nashville, TN)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens

Goal: Project A.S.K. seeks to raise youth self-efficacy, improve knowledge of health issues, highlight math and science concepts tested in school, build leadership qualities, and improve the sense of community.

Project Healthy Bones (New Jersey)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Older Adults, Women, Older Adults

Goal: The goal of Project Healthy Bones is to educate older individuals about osteoporosis and improve strength, balance, and flexibility through strength training exercises.

Project PACE (Huntington, NY)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Children

Goal: The goal of this program is to prevent alcohol, tobacco and drug use.

Project RIO (Re-Integration of Offenders) (Texas)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention

Goal: The goal or this program is to help those who have been incarcerated find employment.

Promotion of Social Competence

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children

Goal: To increase prosocial behavior among elementary school aged children.

Providing Educational Enrichment for Students Expelled from Traditional School Settings (Indianapolis, IN)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

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

Goal: The goal of the Opportunity School is to provide educational enrichment for middle school (6th - 8th grades) students who have been expelled from standard school settings.

Providing Summer Youth Activities (Dallas County, AR)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Art & Recreation / Sports Recreation & Parks, Children, Rural

Goal: The goal of the "Summer Sizzlers" program is to offer productive activities for youth to participate in during the summer vacation.

Public Health and Mental Health: A Model for Success (Jefferson County, CO)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders

Goal: The goals of this program are:

-To provide staff with consultation, clinical support, education and training.
-To provide clients with initial assessment, brief counseling, and access/referral to mental health resources.

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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