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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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Breathe Better Air at School (South Carolina)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Air, Children, Teens, Adults

Goal: The Breathe Better Air at School Program aims to educate parents, staff, bus drivers, and faculty about the importance of not idling vehicles on campus.

Bridges . . . from school to work (Washington, D.C.)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Children

Goal: The Foundation's mission is to foster the employment of young people with disabilities.

Buck Tobacco Sponsorship Project (California)

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

Goal: The goal of the Buck Tobacco Sponsorship Project is to work with rodeo governing bodies throughout the state to establish written, voluntary policies restricting tobacco sponsorship at rodeos.

BuckleUpBoston! Child Passenger Safety Program (Boston, MA)

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

Goal: The goal of BUB is to increase awareness about CPS and usage rates of seats amongst low-income families in the city of Boston.

Burlington Legacy Project (Burlington, VT)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Economic Climate

Goal: The goal of this program is to create a strategy for a sustainable Burlington.

Camp Erin (Stanwood/Snohomish County/Washington)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Children, Teens, Families, Rural

Goal: Camp Erin's goal is to help children through the grieving process by offering grief education and emotional support in a weekend-long camp.

Cancer Screenings for Incarcerated Women (Indianapolis, IN)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Cancer, Women

Goal: The goal of this program is to provide routine cancer screenings to the underserved population of incarcerated women in Indiana.

Care-A-Van Mobile Medical Clinic (Kern County, CA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Families

Goal: The goal of Care-A-Van is to provide access to medical care for uninsured and impoverished working families.

Career Pathways (Seattle-King County, WA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment

Goal: The goal of this program is to improve retention of hospital employees to address critical shortages in health care staffing.

Career Skills Mentoring Program (Palm Beach and Martin, FL)

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

Goal: The goal of the program is to provide at-risk youth with mentorship and employment skills.

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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