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 Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Teens, Adults, Women, Older Adults, Families
Goal: The goal of HFHG is to grow and donate organic fruits and vegetables to the needy in Sonoma county.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Civic Engagement
Goal: The program's mission is to bring community members together to provide food for the hungry by promoting sustainable use of excess resources.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / School Environment, Children, Teens
Goal: The goal of school-based health centers is to reduce gaps in education and increase health equity in low-income communities.
Impact: When targeted to low-income communities, school-based health centers are likely to narrow gaps in education and improve health equity.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Teens, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Goal: The aim of the Healthier Haskell program is to improve health and prevent obesity in the American Indian population by encouraging physical activity and healthy eating.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment
Goal: The goal of this program is to promote active people in active neighborhoods
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children
Goal: The goal of the HCHW toolbox is to provide focused messages related to promoting a healthy weight in young children, along with practical strategies that may be used in multiple settings.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Families
Goal: The goal of the HEAL initiative is empower communities to make changes in their physical and social environment to improve nutrition and physical activity.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children, Families
Goal: Healthy for Life in Sonoma County is a pilot school-based intervention that seeks to reduce childhood obesity, increase student physical activity, and improve student access to nutrition and medical resources.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Women, Families, Rural
Goal: The overall goal of Healthy Futures is to improve community health by ensuring access to health care and community resources for pregnant women and young children in the region.
Impact: In 2012, over 3,500 contacts, 970 home visits, and 30,000 educational mailings were delivered. Of those who initiated breastfeeding at birth, 67% of enrolled infants are still breastfeeding at eight weeks post-partum. Eighty-three percent of enrolled two-year-old children are fully immunized.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Teens, Urban
Goal: The mission of Healthy Kids Express Dental is to improve oral healthcare in children through education on the importance of regular brushing, flossing, and using fluoride as well as through restorative treatments when necessary.
Impact: During the 2014-2015 school year, children pre-Kindergarten through 7th grade saw their average score on a dental knowledge test rise from 64.7% on the pretest to 72.1% on the posttest.