Promising Practices

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Families, Urban

Goal: To prepare children of disadvantaged families for academic success and to strengthen families through intensive home visiting.

Impact: The Parent-Child Home Program builds school readiness, starting from the home. PCHP utilizes a non-directive, in-home modeling approach that encourages children's development, builds meaningful relationships between parents and children, and allows underserved families to access educational early-childhood services.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases

Goal: The goal of Partnership for Health is to reach HIV positive patients during regular doctor visits and increase their knowledge, skills, and motivations to practice safer sex.

Impact: Brief provider counseling emphasizing the negative consequences of unsafe sex can reduce HIV transmission behaviors in HIV-positive patients presenting with risky behavioral profiles.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Goal: Pasos Adelante is a lifestyle intervention that aims to prevent and control chronic disease such as heart disease and diabetes in Mexican Americans by providing a supporting environment for improving nutrition and increasing walking activity in U.S.-Mexico border communities.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Economy / Housing & Homes, Adults, Urban

Goal: The goal of Pathways to Housing, Inc. is to provide independent housing, treatment services for physical and mental health, and employment to mentally ill individuals who are chronically homeless.

Impact: Pathways to Housing has received numerous awards for its projects in New York City, Philadelphia, and D.C. In addition to achieving large effects in terms of housing outcomes, compared with standard care in the community, Housing First also improves community functioning and quality of life.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Cancer, Adults, Older Adults

Goal: The goal of this program is to increase colorectal cancer screening rates among older primary care patients.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality

Goal: The Goal of this Promising Practice is to determine whether a tailored community health worker (CHW) intervention would improve post-hospital outcomes among low-SES patients.

Impact: This intervention would improve access to primary care and quality of discharge while controlling recurrent readmissions in a high-risk population. Health systems may leverage the CHW workforce to improve post-hospital outcomes by addressing behavioral and socioeconomic drivers of disease.

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

Goal: The goal of the PATH Program is to improve knowledge of cardiovascular health and reduce risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Urban

Goal: The goal of Prime Time Palm Beach County is to improve the quality of school-age afterschool programs through assessment, guidance, and support.

Impact: Based on the 2009 study findings, Prime Time's Quality Improvement System resulted in improvements made to afterschool programs which enhanced quality programming and important developmental learning experiences for youth.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / School Environment, Children

Goal: The goal of this program is to promote social and emotional learning (SEL) and character development, to prevent bullying, and to build the problem-solving abilities and other life skills required for positive relationships throughout students' lives.

Impact: One study found that PATH students performed significantly better than their counterparts on the sociometric tests for aggression and hyperactivity-disruptive behavior according to peer sociometric reports. The PATH classrooms also received better observer ratings for their overall classroom atmosphere.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Adolescent Health, Teens

Goal: PATCH envisions a supportive environment in which all adolescents are able to reach optimal health, safety, and economic security.

MISSION: To improve adolescent health and well being by engaging, educating, and empowering youth and adults as trusted partners in care.

Impact: Health care providers and teens who participate in the PATCH program show significant improvements in knowledge, self-efficacy, and behavioral intentions to seek and provide quality sexual health care.