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.
Public Health Surveillance and Communications Using Regional Emergency Medicine Internet (REMI) (Milwaukee, WI)
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment
The goal of this program is to provide real-time information about fast-breaking environmental hazards, communicable outbreaks, or terrorist events.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Teens
The goal of this program is to teach conflict-resolution skills to middle-school students.
Studies showed a statistically significant increase in students' awareness of how their own behaviors contribute to the escalation of a conflict situation for students participating in SMARTteam when compared with the control group not receiving the intervention. Students in the intervention group were also less likely to value violence as an option in conflict situations than their peers in the control group.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Diabetes
The goal of this program is to improve diabetes care in Missouri.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends interventions that reduce client out-of-pocket costs used alone or combined with additional interventions to increase vaccination rates among people of all ages in a range of settings and populations. This includes interventions for individual clinical settings, statewide programs, or national efforts.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Older Adults, Older Adults
The Matter of Balance/Volunteer Lay Leader (MOB/VLL) program is designed to reduce the fear of falling, stop the fear of falling cycle, and improve the activity levels among community-dwelling older adults. The goal of the program is to use volunteer lay leaders as facilitators, in order to make the program affordable to offer in the community setting.
When following up one year after the program, participants reported significant gains in fall management and there was a trend to increased exercise level as well. In addition, participants sustained a reduction in monthly falls.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Disabilities, Adults
The program's goal was to eliminate the waiting period for access to health care benefits for newly entitled SSDI beneficiaries, and see if this investment has long-term benefits.
The AB Demonstration project successfully increased the use of health care services and reduced the reported unmet health care needs of participants in the program.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children
The goal of the Al's Pals program is to teach children how to practice positive ways to express feelings, relate to others, communicate, brainstorm ideas, solve problems, and differentiate between safe and unsafe substances and situations.
Studies have shown that the program resulted in higher degrees of positive change in the intervention groups, increases in prosocial behaviors and positive coping behaviors, and decreases in antisocial and negative coping behaviors.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Other Conditions, Older Adults
The goal of the Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program is to increase joint flexibility, range of motion, and muscle strength among individuals with arthritis.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens
A.S.P.I.R.E aims to reduce teen tobacco use by helping current smokers to quit and preventing non-smokers from beginning to smoke.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Children, Teens, Urban
ASSIST aims to develop a diverse group consisting of young people that will then influence their peers to defy the idea of smoking thus reducing the number of adolescent smokers and reducing its health effects.
A peer-led intervention reduced smoking among adolescents at a modest cost: the ASSIST program cost of £32 ($42 USD) (95% CI = £29.70–£33.80) per student. The incremental cost per student not smoking at 2 years was £1,500 ($1984 USD) (95% CI = £669–£9,947).