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 / Physical Activity, Teens, Urban
The goal of the TACOS program was to use an environmental intervention to increase the availability and consumption of lower-fat foods in a la carte areas of secondary school cafeterias.
The TACOS program successfully increased both the availability and sale of lower-fat foods in a la carte areas of secondary school cafeterias.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends home visits to increase vaccination rates in children and adults. The CPSTF notes, however, that economic evidence shows home visits can be resource-intensive and costly relative to other options.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
-Assessment of infants’ and children’s immunization status
-On-site vaccinations or referral to vaccination providers
-Additional interventions such as client reminder and recall systems, manual tracking and outreach efforts, or adoption of monthly voucher pickup schedules that require more WIC visits when vaccinations are not up-to-date
Vaccination services may be provided in WIC clinics, or through collocation and coordination of WIC programs with other healthcare services.
The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends vaccination programs in Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) settings—when used with additional components--to increase vaccination rates among children.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends standing orders for vaccinations—when used alone or when combined with additional interventions—to increase vaccination rates among adults and children from different populations or settings.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Teens
The goal of this study was to investigate how video games can be utilized to promote healthy behavior changes in diet, physical activity, and adiposity to reduce adverse health effects.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Urban
The goal of the "walking school bus" is to increase children's rates of active commuting to school and physical activity.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Public Safety, Children, Urban
The WalkSafe program was developed to improve pediatric pedestrian safety, increase physical activity levels by encouraging children to walk to and from school, and improve the walkability in and around elementary schools.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders, Adults
The goal of WRAP is to teach participants recovery and self-management skills and strategies.
The WRAP program shows that the efficacy and effectiveness of peer-led self-management interventions has the potential to enhance self-determination and promote recovery for people with psychiatric disabilities.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Rural
The goal of the Winning With Wellness (WWW) project is to promote physical activity and healthier eating habits in order to reduce and prevent childhood obesity.
School wellness programs that are acceptable to teachers and utilize some already existing resources can create impact for rural youth by improving nutrition offerings in school and increasing physical activity during the school day.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Adults, Women, Men, Families, Urban
Research supports the benefits of using the strategies employed by With All Families: Parents (i.e., screening, resource navigation, and parent coaching) to improve family welfare by addressing underlying risk factors related to poverty and access to resources. For example, programs designed to provide screening and resource navigation support are associated with reduced social needs, improved child health and decreased child hospitalization visits. In light of evidence suggesting that social factors may in fact play a larger role in determining one’s health than medical care, programs that target these social factors, such as With All Families: Parents, are becoming increasingly important.
References
Garg, A., Toy, S., Tripodis, Y., Silverstein, M., & Freeman, E. (2015). Addressing social determinants of health at well child care visits: a cluster RCT. Pediatrics, 135(2), e296-e304.
Gottlieb, L. M., Hessler, D., Long, D., Laves, E., Burns, A. R., Amaya, A., ... & Adler, N. E. (2016). Effects of social needs screening and in-person service navigation on child health: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA pediatrics, 170(11), e162521-e162521.
Pantell, M. S., Hessler, D., Long, D., Alqassari, M., Schudel, C., Laves, E., ... & Gottlieb, L. M. (2020). Effects of in-person navigation to address family social needs on child health care utilization: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA network open, 3(6), e206445-e206445.
Braveman, P., & Gottlieb, L. (2014). The social determinants of health: it's time to consider the causes of the causes. Public health reports, 129(1_suppl2), 19-31.