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 Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Adults, Women, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Goal: The goal of Cultivando la Salud is to increase breast and cervical cancer screening among low-income Hispanic women.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Diabetes, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Goal: The goal of this promising practice was to provide Mexican-Americans with the knowledge, skills, and support to improve general health measures and manage their diabetes.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Oral Health, Children
Goal: The goal of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment Exception to Policy program is to increase the amount of Medicaid-enrolled children who receive oral screenings and fluoride varnish applications.
Filed under Good Idea, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Families
Goal: The Early Care and Education Program's goal is to provide the highest quality childcare and early education services to children from disadvantaged families.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education
Goal: ELLM aims to decrease literacy gaps in the K-12 system by improving emergent literacy skills through preschool curricula interventions, involving a multi-faceted approach of a rigorous classroom curricula, family involvement, a support system for the teachers, and ongoing assessment of current practices.
Educating and Delivering Financial Services to Low-Income, Underserved Residents and Businesses (Cuyahoga County, OH)
Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Investment & Personal Finance, Families
Goal: The goal is to offer members of poor and underserved communities ownership in an established financial cooperative. By purchasing shares in the Faith Community United Credit Union (FCUCU), individuals gain access to services and learn the difference between using what belongs to someone else and owning their own institution.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens, Families
Goal: EFFEKT seeks to reduce teenage alcohol use by changing the attitudes of their parents. Information is disseminated to the parents at school meetings at the beginning of each semester and through regular communications.
Impact: EFFEKT seeks to reduce teen drinking by changing parental behaviors through structured presentations at their child’s school. Working with parents proved to be an effective way to reduce underage drinking as well as teen delinquency.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants, Children, Teens, Adults
Goal: To restore the Elizabeth River to the highest practical level of environmental quality through government, business and community partnerships.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Children, Adults, Families, Urban
Goal: The goals of Engage DuPage include improving the health status of self-pay Emergency Department patients, increasing the revenue appropriately owed to hospitals for services rendered, improving the financial assistance processes involving self-pay Emergency Department patients, and reducing the number of avoidable Emergency Department visits among self-pay patients.
Impact: By the end of 2014, 57% of all benefit applications that were submitted were approved. In addition, 29% of all interested patients were connected to a primary care provider through a Community Access Specialist.
Environmental Improvements Brought by the Legal Interventions in the Homes of Poorly Controlled Inner-City Adult Asthmatic Patients (New York City, New York)
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Urban
Goal: The goal is to use a medical-legal collaborative intervention to force landlords into maintaining healthy living conditions for residents with poorly controlled asthma.
Impact: This proof-of concept study exhibits that medical-legal collaboration can significantly impact the control of inner-city asthmatics by improving their domestic environment.