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.
Filed under Local, Good Idea, Health / Cancer, Adults, Rural
Goal: To get as many age appropriate people screened as possible in the community and to raise awareness about the life-saving practice of colorectal screening.
Impact: Many cancers have been found and many have been prevented. The population has expressed gratitude for this program and the partners (such as the pharmacies and the hospital lab) are proud to be part of it.
Filed under Local, Good Idea, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Adults, Women, Families
Goal: To improve the health and well-being of Kansans by working collaboratively to promote, protect and support breastfeeding.
Filed under Local, Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Adults, Families, Urban
Goal: The goal of the project was to increase the number of students current with school-required immunizations through utilization of the state immunization registry and increasing the number of parental consent forms received for immunization in School-Located Vaccine Clinics.
Impact: Of 2,015 children not in compliance with school immunization policies, 1,094 (54%) were brought into compliance through state immunization registry records or immunization in School-Located Vaccine Clinics.
Filed under Local, Effective Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Families, Urban
Goal: The goal of TRICKs was to reach out to parents using a novel reminder system and increase immunization rates at the KU pediatric clinic.
Impact: There was a significant increase in immunization rate following the implementation of parent text reminders when compared to the initial immunization rate.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Adults
Goal: The goal of this program is to improve colorectal cancer screening rates among older adults.
Impact: Participants in the intervention group had significantly higher colorectal cancer screening attendance, as well as having more positive attitudes about screening and placing a higher priority on screening.
Home Again: A Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness in Portland and Multnomah County (Portland and Multnomah County, OR)
Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Housing & Homes, Urban
Goal: The goal of this program is to end homelessness in the City of Portland and Multnomah County by 2015. As efforts to end homelessness continue, city and county officials will focus on nine actions. Programs throughout the county will address moving people into Housing First, ending the practice of discharging people into homelessness from jails and hospitals, improving outreach, emphasizing permanent solutions, increasing the housing supply, creating new partnerships, improving the rent assistance system, increasing economic opportunity for homeless people and implementing new data collection technology.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Teens
Goal: The goals of the Open Meadow program are 1) to re-engage high risk youth so they will complete their education; and 2) to connect high risk youth to their community in a positive way.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Children, Teens, Urban
Goal: The overriding treatment goal of Kartini Clinic is to secure lasting remission of eating disorder symptoms, allowing patients and their families to return to their own communities. Using a holistic approach, embracing medical as well as psychological and social interventions, patients are treated with the belief that parents do not cause eating disorders and children do not choose to have them.
Impact: Since 1998, Kartini Clinic has treated more than 2,000 patients and their families for a range of eating disorders.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Families, Urban
Goal: To increase equitable access to healthy food and strengthen communities by empowering neighbors to share in the harvest and care of city-grown produce.
Filed under Effective Practice, Economy, Adults, Urban
Goal: The program’s main focus was on moving welfare recipients quickly into the workforce.
Impact: There was a sizable increase in employment rates and job earnings, reduction in welfare dependency, and savings to the government.