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 Local, Good Idea, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Children, Adults, Families, Urban
Goal: The goals of Engage DuPage include improving the health status of self-pay Emergency Department patients, increasing the revenue appropriately owed to hospitals for services rendered, improving the financial assistance processes involving self-pay Emergency Department patients, and reducing the number of avoidable Emergency Department visits among self-pay patients.
Impact: By the end of 2014, 57% of all benefit applications that were submitted were approved. In addition, 29% of all interested patients were connected to a primary care provider through a Community Access Specialist.
Filed under Local, Good Idea, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: The mission of the Wheaton/Warrenville Early Childhood Collaborative is to effectively coordinate services focused on providing opportunities for learning success and improved Kindergarten readiness for all Community Unit School District 200 children birth to five, especially those most vulnerable.
The 4 goals of the WWECC are:
1. Improve communication among early childhood service providers though implementation of collaborative partner and sub-committee meetings.
2. Increase parent education about childhood development needs.
3. Increase professional development for early childhood service providers.
4. Increase children's Kindergarten/school readiness.
Impact: This targeted program can have a strong impact, as research shows that 85% of brain development occurs by age 5 and that high-quality early care and education experiences lead to lower drop-out rates, lower rates of becoming a teen parent, and lower rates of participation in special education.
Filed under Local, Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Urban
Goal: The goal of the program is to provide police departments, schools and others with Naloxone and proper training to save lives from heroin overdose and to provide individuals with a chance to recover.
Impact: In the first six months of the second year, 26 saves were recorded.
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 Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Adults
Goal: The goal of this program is to improve colorectal cancer screening rates among older adults.
Impact: Participants in the intervention group had significantly higher colorectal cancer screening attendance, as well as having more positive attitudes about screening and placing a higher priority on screening.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Transportation, Adults, Urban
Goal: The goal of Casual Carpool is to match commuters in order to reduce traffic congestion and to save money for both drivers and passengers by avoiding public transit fees and bridge tolls.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Transportation, Children, Teens, Adults, Urban
Goal: The goal of Cycles of Change is to enable community members to use bicycles as a primary form of transportation through bicycle education and distribution programs.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Adults, Older Adults, Urban
Goal: The program’s mission is to meet community nutrition needs through programs for people living with HIV/AIDS, the homebound critically ill, and seniors.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants
Goal: The Waste Management Authority and the Source Reduction and Recycling Board form an integrated Agency dedicated to achieving the most environmentally sound solid waste management and resource conservation program for the people of Alameda County. Within this context, the Agency is committed to achieving a 75% and beyond diversion goal and promoting sustainable consumption and disposal patterns.