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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.

Practices that were submitted by local partners are listed first and will have a green box below them that indicates they are local. Users can also use the search features to find promising practices from across the country.

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Women's Initiative (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Investment & Personal Finance, Women, Urban

Goal: The goal of Women's Initiative is to help low-income women start their own businesses.

Seven Principles Project - San Francisco (San Francisco)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Teens, Adults, Women, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The goals of the SevenPrinciples Project, funded by the CDC's REACH 2010 Initiative, are to: eliminate disparities in infant mortality rates; improve African American infant survival; and improve the health of families and communities with infants through developing community capacity.

Planning for Elders in the Central City (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Economy / Housing & Homes, Older Adults, Urban

Goal: The goal of Planning for Elders in the Central City is to improve the quality of life of seniors, adults wtih disabilties and care providers in San Francisco and beyond through community organizations, advocacy and education activities.

Yerba Buena Gardens Neighborhood Revitalization (San Francisco)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Economic Climate, Urban

Goal: The YBG neighborhood was developed to (1) reclaim a severely blighted sector of the City, (2) provide public amenities, (3) support San Francisco's hospitality industry, and (4) increase economic vitality and employment.

Flex Your Power Case Study: Elihu M Harris State Building (San Francisco)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability

Goal: The goal of this program was to improve the energy efficiency of the Elihu Harris State Office Building.

Flex Your Power Case Study: Equity Office Cogeneration Systems (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Urban

Goal: The goals and operational benefits of (DG) systems include the delivery of improved power reliability, cleaner electric power, and below market energy rates, in an environmentally friendly manner.

Flex Your Power Case Study: Swinerton, Inc. (San Francisco)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Urban

Goal: The goal of this project was to improve energy efficiency, reduce costs, and provide a better work atmosphere for employees.

Gilman Rec-Connect (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

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

Goal: The goal of Gilman Rec-Connect is to revitalize existing recreational activities and create new programming for youth and their families.

Green Affordable Housing Coalition (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability

Goal: The goal of the Green Affordable Housing Coalition is to produce economic and quality of life benefits for tenants and generate economic and environmental benefits by incorporating green building practices in the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of affordable housing.

HIV Sexual Risk Reduction Intervention (San Francisco, CA)

Note: This practice has been Archived.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: To increase consistent condom use among low-income African American young 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.
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