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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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Pounds Off Digitally (Raleigh-Durham, NC)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Adults

Goal: The goal of the Pounds Off Digitally podcast is increase weight loss among overweight and obese adults.

Powerful Choices for the Environment (Washington)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Children

Goal: The program is designed to empower 6-8th grade students across the region with the knowledge that their everyday choices do make a difference. The program aims to influence how middle school students and their families think about and use natural resources in their daily lives.

Pregnancy Health: Exercise Programs to Prevent Gestational Hypertension

CDC

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Women, Families

Goal: The goal of exercise programs for pregnant women is to improve health and prevent gestational hypertension.

Impact: Exercise programs reduce the development of high blood pressure in pregnancy.

Project SHINE

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Civic Engagement, Teens, Older Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The goal of Project SHINE is to build strong, healthy, and sustainable communities by fostering positive growth and relationships among its participants.

Project SUCCESS (USA)

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

Goal: The goal of Project SUCCESS is to prevent and reduce substance abuse in high-risk middle-school and high-school aged adolescents.

Project SUCCESS - Clay Behavioral Health Center (Middleburg, FL)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens

Goal: The goal of Project SUCCESS is to prevent and reduce substance abuse in high-risk middle-school and high-school aged adolescents.

Queens Botanical Garden (Flushing, NY)

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Urban

Goal: The Queens Botanical Garden, a living museum serving the most ethnically diverse county in the United States, is committed to presenting collections, education and research initiatives and programs that demonstrate environmental stewardship, promote sustainability and celebrate the rich cultural connections between people and plants.

Raising Readers (Maine)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Families

Goal: To foster a love of reading, improve literacy among babies and young children, and ultimately, improve the health and educational outcomes of Maine children.

READ 180 (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Teens

Goal: The goal of READ 180 is to improve literacy among children and teenagers through curriculum, instruction, assessment, and professional development.

Reading Recovery

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Literacy, Children

Goal: The goal of this program is to help children who are having difficulty learning to read and write.

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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