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.
Addressing the Social Determinants of Health through the Alameda County, California, Place Matters Policy Initiative (Alameda County, CA)
Filed under Good Idea, Health, Urban
Goal: The goal of the Place Matters initiative is to improve the health of participating communities by “addressing social conditions that lead to poor health” through “identifying the complex root causes of health disparities and defining strategies to address them.”
Impact: AC Place Matters has identified 10 best practices that could help other programs address social determinants of health: find and foster strong leadership, dedicate staff resources to the work, engage staff from across the local health department, contribute to building grassroots power, address root causes, partner with community organizations and leaders, partner with government institutions across sectors, work reactively and proactively, build capacity, and use tools that ensure a focus on health equity.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants, Urban
Goal: The goal of this program is to reduce food waste in order to achieve the ultimate Alameda County goal of a 75% landfill diversion rate by the year 2010.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality
Goal: The goal of Project Access is to improve access to specialty health care in Buncombe County.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders
Goal: To have an EMR system that allows medical professionals to correctly diagnose and address the medical needs of incarcerated patients in the emergency room or in the prison system.
Impact: The program has allowed for greater accessibility and sharing of medical data.
Environmental Improvements Brought by the Legal Interventions in the Homes of Poorly Controlled Inner-City Adult Asthmatic Patients (New York City, New York)
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Urban
Goal: The goal is to use a medical-legal collaborative intervention to force landlords into maintaining healthy living conditions for residents with poorly controlled asthma.
Impact: This proof-of concept study exhibits that medical-legal collaboration can significantly impact the control of inner-city asthmatics by improving their domestic environment.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Urban
Goal: The goal of these projects was to find ways to maximize energy conservation and efficiency through measures with a quick payback period.
Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Housing & Homes
Goal: The goal of the Genesee County Land Bank is to return land obtained through foreclosure to the tax roll at a higher and better condition than when received.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Air
Goal: The goal of this program is to increase the amount of reliable air quality data that is available to the public in Harris County.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Heart Disease & Stroke
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.