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 Good Idea, Environmental Health / Environmental Justice, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
The goal of the Environmental Health Leadership Training is to inform and empower the predominately low income people of three urban communities in Northern Manhattan (Central Harlem, West Harlem, and Washington Heights) to improve their capacity to organize for community environmental health and justice in New York City. The long term goal of these efforts is to help intervene and reduce exposure to environmental toxicants which are adversely affecting the health of disadvantaged, medically underserved, predominantly African American and Latino populations in Northern Manhattan.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Children, Families
The goals of HFNY are to promote positive parent-child interaction; to ensure optimal pre-natal care; to promote healthy childhood growth and development; and to enhance family functioning.
Mothers participating in the HFNY study were significantly less likely to deliver low-birth-weight babies than mothers in the control group (3.3% vs 8.3%). HFNY parents also reported having engaged in significantly fewer acts of serious abuse and neglect.
Medical-Legal Partnerships: Investing in Social Services as a Core Strategy for Healthcare (New York City)
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality, Children, Teens, Adults, Urban
New York City LegalHealth is a fruitful partnership that operates in 11 clinics of the city's public hospitals. One example is by supporting individuals in tenant-landlord disputes.
With an average of $225 per case, LegalHealth was able to effectively demand fixes in asthma patients' living conditions. This impact directly resulted in a 90% drop in emergency room visits and hospital admissions for this asthma patient group.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Teens, Adults, Women, Men, Families
A 10-session group program, with two individual sessions, for divorced mothers and their children to promote resilience in children after parental divorce.
At the fifteen-year followup, NBP reduced the incidence of internalizing disorders for females and males and substance-related disorders and substance use for males.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Physical Activity, Urban
On December 5, 2006, the NYC Board of Health approved an amendment to the Health Code to phase out artificial trans fat in all NYC restaurants and other food service establishments. It is now in full effect.
Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
The goal of this program is to provide assistance to clients whose primary language is not English.
Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Investment & Personal Finance
The goal of the program is to increase access to financial services for low-income families as well as stimulate economic development in distressed neighborhoods.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Toxins & Contaminants, Urban
The goal of the Coalition was to encourage the EPA to add dioxins as reportable chemicals unter the Toxics Release Inventory
The Developmentally Supportive Care: Newborn Individualized Developmental Care & Assessment Program (Boston, MA)
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Children, Families
The goal of NIDCAP is to maximize physical, mental, and emotional growth, health, and other positive outcomes for infants in NICUs.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Educational Attainment
The goal of this program is to recognize and reward outstanding public service, academic excellence, and community service.