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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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Filed under Good Idea, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases

Goal: The intent of the practice is to decrease mortality and morbidity relative to Hepatitis A, B or C infection rate in Western New York.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / School Environment, Children

Goal: The goals of this program are:
- Detect school adjustment difficulties
- Prevent social and emotional problems
- Enhance learning skills

Impact: One study demonstrated that participants made significant improvements in task orientation, specifically in working more independently and completing tasks faster. In behavior control, program students showed increased coping skills and lower levels of aggressiveness and produced fewer disruptions. In assertiveness, students had improved participation in activities, were better at expressing ideas, and showed increased leadership and decreased shyness. Improvements in peer sociability included increases in the quality of peer relationships and improved social skills. Several other evaluations of the Primary Project present evidence of improved school adjustment and decreases in problem behaviors for participants.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Urban

Goal: The goal of Prime Time Palm Beach County is to improve the quality of school-age afterschool programs through assessment, guidance, and support.

Impact: Based on the 2009 study findings, Prime Time's Quality Improvement System resulted in improvements made to afterschool programs which enhanced quality programming and important developmental learning experiences for youth.

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

Goal: The goal of this program is to help divert youths in early stages of delinquency from committing future crimes.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Women

Goal: The goal of this program is to improve health outcomes for pregnant and postpartum women with substance abuse problems and their infants.

Impact: Improvement in birth weight and gestational age, and reduction in admittance to neonatal intensive care unit and positive infant toxicology screens.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Adults

Goal: The goal of Project PREVENT is to reduce behavioral risk factors for colorectal cancer among individuals with positive screenings.

Impact: A significantly greater proportion of Project PREVENT participants reduced their multiple risk factor score when compared to the control group (47% vs. 35%). Intervention participants also had significantly greater multivitamin intake and significantly reduced red meat consumption.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Teens

Goal: The goal of this program is to decrease alcohol, tobacco, and drug use and to decrease violence and weapons-carrying among high school students.

Impact: At 2-year follow-up, students in Project TND schools were about half as likely to use tobacco when compared with students in control schools. Students in Project TND schools were about one-fifth as likely to use hard drugs relative to similar students in control schools.

Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Families

Goal: To foster a love of reading, improve literacy among babies and young children, and ultimately, improve the health and educational outcomes of Maine children.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Adults, Families

Goal: The mission of Reach Out and Read is to help prepare young children to succeed in school, by partnering with physicians to encouraging parents and children to read aloud together.

Impact: Reach Out and Read improves children's language development by 3-6 months and improves language ability with increased exposure to the program.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Adults, Families, Urban

Goal: Reach Out and Read prepares America's youngest children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to encourage families
to read together.