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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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Memphis Fast Forward (Shelby County, TN)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Economic Climate

Goal: Memphis Fast Forward is the shared vision and unprecedented action plan to create good jobs, a better-educated workforce, a safer community, a healthier citizenry and efficient government in Memphis and Shelby County.

Impact: Major violent and property crime were reduced by 22.8% and 25.5%. The pool of high-potential teacher candidates increased from 21 to 1,800 in one year. More than 15,000 jobs were created. New capital investment of $4.2 billion was generated. Local governments saved more than $75 million.

MHD-MWW Water Quality Technical Workgroup (Milwaukee, WI)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases, Urban

Goal: The overriding goal of the workgroup is to develop, institute and evaluate preventive measures (e.g. procedures, protocols and policies) that would mitigate the impact of any future waterborne disease incidents. Post 9/11, the workgroup has evolved to include discussions on water security in the context of an intentional contamination event.

Minneapolis Center for Victim–Offender Mediation (Minneapolis, MN)

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

Goal: The goal of this program is to Promote and enhance restorative justice dialogue, principles, and practices.

Minority Outreach Recreation Program (San Francisco Bay Area)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Disabilities, Children, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of BORP’s Minority Outreach Program is to make recreational activities more accessible to disabled minority or immigrant individuals.

Mispillion River Greenway (Milford, DE)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Children, Teens, Adults, Families

Goal: The goal of the Mispillion River Greenway is to provide new transportation options for downtown travel and encourage reinvestment in the business district.

Mobile Community CareLink (CCL) (Kansas City, MO)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens, Adults, Women, Men, Older Adults, Families, Urban

Goal: The goal of Mobile CCL is to foster a higher level of client engagement and motivation in the treatment/recovery process.

Impact: As a web-based client portal to care management, Mobile CCL is enabling the integration of behavioral health treatment with primary care.

Motivational Enhancement (ME) First/ME After (Kansas City, MO)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Other Conditions, Adults, Urban

Goal: The goal of ME First/ME After is to address the gap in treatment resources for individuals waiting to be admitted to treatment for substance abuse or who are reintegrating back into the community after treatment by supporting motivation for change, increasing wellness and decreasing recidivism.

Impact: Over 200 clients participated in the ME First program in 2013. Approximately 80% of these clients completed the program and entered treatment for substance abuse with increased motivation for change.

Movimiento Ascendencia (Pueblo, CO)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Teens

Goal: The goal of this program is to provide girls with positive alternatives to substance use and gang involvement.

Multimodal Substance Abuse Prevention (Philadelphia, PA)

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

Goal: The goal of this program is to reduce substance use and other illegal behaviors among teenage males.

National Clean Diesel Campaign (NCDC) (USA)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Air

Goal: NCDC participants are committed to reducing diesel emissions and finding innovative ways to protect human health and the environment. To fully address the challenges of reducing diesel emissions the NCDC is using a multi-pronged approach:

- Commitment to the successful implementation of the 2007 Highway Engine Rule and the Clean Air Nonroad Diesel Rule.
- Developing new emissions standards for locomotive and marine diesel engines.
- Promoting the reduction of emissions for existing diesel engines through cost-effective and innovative strategies, including use of cleaner fuels, retrofitting and repairing existing fleets, idling reduction among others.

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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