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.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Oral Health, Older Adults
Goal: The goal of this educational program was to improve the quality of oral health care nursing home residents received from their caregivers.
Impact: This study shows that oral health care education can improve caregivers' knowledge, attitudes and oral health care delivery for elderly clients.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Transportation, Families
Goal: Indiana has a primary seat belt law which enables law enforcement officers to issue citations when they are observed. However, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled that officers may not indiscriminately stop motorists to see if they are wearing their seat belts. To increase safety belt usage compliance, members of the Traffic Safety Partnership developed Seat Belt Enforcement Zones. The primary objectives of these enforcement zones are to: combine public awareness initiatives and enforcement efforts; utilize multi-agency personnel from participating law enforcement agencies; operate on a zero tolerance policy for violations; inform residents about current seat belt usage rates using metal signs posted at various county locations.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Teens, Families, Rural
Goal: The goal of this project was to prevent substance abuse among high-risk youth in Arizona.
Impact: Participants in the experimental group experienced significant differences in family relations, significant decrease in alcohol and other drugs, and also a significant decrease of alcohol use by family members. Participants of the control group did not experience similar impacts.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Children, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Goal: Teach Baltimore sought to prevent summer learning loss and promote academic achievement among early elementary school students.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Family Planning
Goal: The TPP/SVAT was formed to:
- Decrease isolation of persons working on teen pregnancy and sexual violence issues in Ramsey County communities.
- Increase their access to best practice information and culture-specific resources.
- Increase public understanding of teen pregnancy and sexual violence issues and effective prevention.
- Improve public policy related to teen pregnancy and sexual violence issues.
The program's objectives include:
- Developing and continuing to expand a community coalition for members' capacity building and leadership development.
- Increasing use of culture-specific practices.
- Increasing community awareness and understanding of teen pregnancy and sexual violence issues.
- Promoting teen health services.
- Encouraging schools to implement effective comprehensive sexuality education.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Older Adults, Older Adults, Rural
Goal: The mission of the Health Council is to enhance the quality of life in Grant County, New Mexico, through assessment of needs, planning and prioritizing, and coordinating of efforts to meet those needs.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Families, Urban
Goal: To provide low-cost immunization for hepatitis A and B, screening for hepatitis B, and to increase community awareness about hepatitis B.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Goal: The goal of the ACCESS to Healthcare Information for Culturally Diverse Populations Project is to reduce health disparities for culturally and linguistically diverse populations within the community.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children, Teens
Goal: The Children's National Food Allergy School Nurse Education Program seeks to increase knowledge about childhood food allergy through a standardized educational curriculum.
Impact: The Children's National Food Allergy School Nurse Education Program significantly increased the percent of nurses in the District of Columbia who believed students were teased or bullied due to food allergy and felt food allergy was a serious health concern for which schools should have guidelines.
Discovering Previously Unidentified Foodborne Illness Risks through Discussion (Olmstead County, MN)
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Food Safety
Goal: The goal of this program was to promote the active management of food borne illness risk factors by food service operators. Its objectives were to: shift the food safety program's focus from counting violations to evaluating food safety risks and systems, use an assessment process based on discussion of foodborne illness risks with the manger/operator, and develop the ability to track assessment results toward the Healthy People 2010 goals.