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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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Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore is to influence the final version of Baltimore’s new zoning code by informing stakeholders and decision-makers about the new zoning code’s potential to create healthy communities and decrease health disparities, with an emphasis on preventing obesity and crime.

Impact: Zoning for a Healthy Baltimore is an HIA of the Baltimore zoning code rewrite in order to maximize the potential to create healthier communities. Since publication, Baltimore has revised its zoning code to incorporate dispersal standards and other strategies related to placement of alcohol outlets.

DLM Early Childhood Express/Imagine It! (Palm Beach)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Urban

Goal: To improve the school readiness of children in Palm Beach County.

Healthy Beginnings (Palm Beach, FL)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Children, Women, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: Through prevention and early intervention efforts, the Healthy Beginnings Program provides opportunities for children and families to optimize birth, early childhood and family outcomes in a supportive community.

Public Health Communications Response to the Influenza Vaccine Shortage (Pinellas County, FL)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Governance, Older Adults, Families

Goal: The goal was to provide flu vaccine to those most at risk while minimizing public alarm and gaining acceptance by employees that the traditionally free flu vaccine would not be available.

The Magnolia Project (Jacksonville, Duval County)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Family Planning, Women, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The Magnolia Project's mission is to improve the health and well-being of women during their childbearing years by empowering communities to address medical, behavioral, cultural and social service needs.

Flex Your Power Case Study: City of Redondo Beach (Redondo Beach, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability

Goal: The goal of these projects is to improve energy efficiency in Redondo Beach.

Florida's Marriage and Family Support Initiatives (Florida)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Families

Goal: The goal of this program is to provide comprehensive statewide strategies for Florida to promote violence-free, substance-abuse-free, respectful, nurturing families based on the foundation of a healthy marriage relationship between parents.

Prescription for Health Diabetes Project (Homestead and Florida City, FL)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Diabetes, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Rural

Goal: The goal of the Prescription for Health Diabetes Project was to improve health outcomes for people with type 2 diabetes through culturally-appropriate interventions.

Present and Prevent (Florida)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Teens

Goal: The purpose of Present and Prevent is to educate teens about the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle in order to prevent obesity.

CareNet (Florida)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

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

Goal: The goal of CareNet is to provide underinsured or uninsured workers with discounted health care services.

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.
Healthy Marin