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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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Volunteers in Neighborhood Services (VINS) (Rancho Cordova, CA)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Urban

Goal: The goal of the program is to use volunteerism to instill community pride while promoting and improving the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of Rancho Cordova.

Walk Across Texas! (Texas)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Adults, Families

Goal: To help Texans establish the habit of regular physical activity as a way to reduce excess body weight.

Walk in to Work Out (Glasgow, Scotland)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Adults, Urban

Goal: The goal of Walk in to Work Out is to increase daily physical activity.

Walk the Talk (San Francisco)

Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Teens, Adults, Urban

Goal: Walk the Talk nurtures community involvement and leadership in individuals.

Washington State Translation Program (Washington)

Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Government Assistance, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: The goal of this program is to ensure that Washington's Social and Health Services are available and accessible to all Washington residents.

WasteWise (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants

Goal: The goal of WasteWise is to encourage and assist companies and organizations in the United States to reduce waste.

Water Jets in School Cafeterias (New York)

Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children, Families, Urban

Goal: The goal of the program is to improve access to fresh drinking water as a calorie-free beverage option in select NYC school cafeterias at lunchtime.

Wayne County Intensive Probation Program (Wayne County, MI)

Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Teens, Urban

Goal: The goal of this program is to prevent further criminal activity and incarceration among juvenile delinquents.

Weed and Seed (USA)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use

Goal: The goals of Weed and Seed are to control violent crime, drug trafficking, and drug-related crime and provide a safe environment where residents can live, work, and raise their families.

Wellness for African Americans through Churches (WATCH) Project (Noth Carolina)

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Cancer, Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Rural

Goal: The goal of the WATCH project is to improve diet and colorectal cancer screening rates among African American adults.

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.