Strategies

What Works for Health includes evidence-informed strategies to create communities where everyone can thrive.

29 Strategies
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Adult vocational training

Support acquisition of job-specific skills through education, certification programs, or on-the-job training, often with personal development resources and other supports

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Employment

Alcohol advertising restrictions

Restrict the content and placement of alcohol advertisements on broadcasts, outdoor displays, internet marketing, etc. via state laws, local ordinances, industry self-regulation, or a combination of efforts

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Alcohol brief interventions

Provide information and increase motivation to change or prevent problematic alcohol consumption in a short session; also called alcohol screening & brief intervention

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Ban the Box

Prohibit criminal history questions on job applications and postpone background checks

Evidence Rating:
Mixed Evidence
  • Employment

Bridge programs for hard-to-employ adults

Provide basic skills (e.g., reading, math, writing, English language, or soft skills) and industry-specific training with other supports; also called occupationally contextualized basic education programs

Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion
  • Education
  • Employment

Campus alcohol bans

Restrict alcohol consumption anywhere on a college or university campus or only in specific areas (e.g., residence halls)

Evidence Rating:
Insufficient Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Career pathways programs

Provide occupation-specific training for low-skilled individuals in high-growth industries, with education and supports, usually with stackable credentials and work experience opportunities

Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion
  • Employment

Designated driver promotion programs

Encourage use of designated drivers via population-based mass media campaigns, incentive programs based in drinking establishments, and other efforts

Evidence Rating:
Insufficient Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Financial incentives for new nursing faculty

Offer loan repayment, tuition assistance, competitive academic salaries, etc. to students who teach in nursing programs after completing an advanced degree

Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion
  • Access to Care

Group prenatal care

Provide prenatal care in a group setting, integrating health assessment, education, and support

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care

Health insurance enrollment outreach & support

Provide outreach and support to assist those whose employers do not offer affordable coverage, who are self-employed, or who are unemployed

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Access to Care

Health literacy interventions

Increase patients’ health-related knowledge via efforts to simplify health education materials, improve patient-provider communication, and increase overall literacy

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care
  • Quality of Care

High school equivalency credentials

Offer programs to help individuals without a high school diploma or its equivalent achieve a high school equivalency credential

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Education
  • Employment

Long-acting reversible contraception access

Increase access to LARCs through cost reduction, comprehensive birth control counseling, provider training, efforts to ensure availability at local clinics, etc.

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care
  • Sexual Activity

Mass media campaigns against alcohol-impaired driving

Use mass media campaigns to persuade individuals to avoid drinking and driving or to prevent others from doing so; campaigns often focus on the negative consequences of alcohol-impaired driving

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Mass media campaigns against underage drinking

Use television, radio, print, and social media efforts to increase awareness of underage drinking and its consequences

Evidence Rating:
Insufficient Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Medical homes

Provide continuous, comprehensive, whole person primary care that uses a coordinated team of medical providers across the health care system

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Quality of Care
  • Access to Care

Mentoring for new nurses

Pair new nurses with more experienced nurses who act as a resource and provide support as the new nurse establishes her or himself professionally

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care

Nurse residency programs

Implement programs that continue education, mentoring, and support for novice nurses following graduation

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care

Preconception education interventions

Provide women with information about the risks and benefits of behaviors that affect their health before, during, and after pregnancy

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Access to Care

Rural training in medical education

Expand medical school training and learning experiences focused on the skills necessary to practice successfully in rural areas

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Access to Care

School dental programs

Provide sealants, fluoride treatment, screening, and other preventive dental care on school grounds via partnerships with dental professionals

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Access to Care

School-based health centers

Provide health care services on school premises to attending elementary, middle, and high school students; physical and mental health services provided by teams of nurses, nurse practitioners, and physicians

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Education
  • Access to Care

Sector-based workforce initiatives

Provide industry-focused education and job training based on the needs of regional employers within specific sectors

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Employment

Syringe services programs

Provide sterile injection equipment and often other treatment and referral services to people who inject drugs; also called needle or syringe exchange programs and needle syringe programs

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Universal school-based alcohol prevention programs

Provide all students with the information and skills to prevent alcohol use; programs can be delivered via a specific curriculum or as a component of classroom behavior management

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Youth apprenticeship initiatives

Provide participating high school students with professional opportunities that combine academic and on-the-job training or mentorship

Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion
  • Employment