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 Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: The goal of the Community AIDS Prevention Program is to educate inner city Latino adolescents about how to reduce risk related to HIV/AIDS, and to encourage sexually active teens to use condoms.
Impact: This program shows that prevention programs targeting HIV/AIDS risk-reduction strategies and condom use encouragement can delay male initiation of sexual intercourse, reduce females' number of sexual partners, and increase likelihood of possessing a condom among sexually active youth.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens, Women, Urban
Goal: The goal of the Safer Sex project is to increase condom use, prevent recurrent STDs, and eliminate or reduce risky sexual behaviors among adolescent females that have been diagnosed with an STD.
Impact: The Safer Sex project shows that individualized safer sex interventions may improve condom use and decrease the number of partners among adolescent girls who have had an STD.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Adults, Families, Urban
Goal: To achieve an improved physical environment, sense of community, and quality of life for members, residents and patrons of the Fenway Cultural District in Boston, Massachusetts.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Children's Health, Children, Families
Goal: The goal of BUB is to increase awareness about CPS and usage rates of seats amongst low-income families in the city of Boston.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: The goal of this program is to decrease barriers and increase rates for colorectal cancer screening among low-income, non-English speaking patients.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Respiratory Diseases, Children, Families, Urban
Goal: The Healthy Pest Free Housing Initiative aims to reduce environmental health risks and asthma among residents of Boston public housing through education, outreach, and systems change.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Crime & Crime Prevention, Teens, Urban
Goal: The primary goals of KNOW THE LAW! include: to improve young people's awareness of legal issues, including both their rights and responsibilities; to help them make positive decisions and resist negative peer pressure; to teach participants to use their bodies, voices, and imagination as actors; to help participants learn basic theatre vocabulary and stage directions; to improve participants' self-confidence, promote high self-esteem, and develop good work habits; and to encourage participants to look at themselves as positive role models for their peers, developing both leadership and collaboration skills.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
Goal: To create a health insurance access program that reduces barriers to obtaining insurance to care for Latinos in Boston.
Filed under Good Idea, Environmental Health / Air
Goal: NCDC participants are committed to reducing diesel emissions and finding innovative ways to protect human health and the environment. To fully address the challenges of reducing diesel emissions the NCDC is using a multi-pronged approach:
- Commitment to the successful implementation of the 2007 Highway Engine Rule and the Clean Air Nonroad Diesel Rule.
- Developing new emissions standards for locomotive and marine diesel engines.
- Promoting the reduction of emissions for existing diesel engines through cost-effective and innovative strategies, including use of cleaner fuels, retrofitting and repairing existing fleets, idling reduction among others.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Oral Health, Older Adults
Goal: The mission of the Oral Health Equity Project (OHEP) is to increase access to preventative services and dental care for economically disadvantaged elders living in Boston's public housing. The specific goal of the three-year project is to provide oral health screening to 1000 low-income elders.