Strategies

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

99 Strategies
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Medical-legal partnerships

Integrate legal services into health care settings to address legal issues that affect health (e.g., housing, food, utilities); services provided by private practice lawyers, law students, etc.
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices

Medication-assisted treatment access enhancement initiatives

Provide medications such as methadone to individuals diagnosed with opioid use disorder in outpatient, residential, and hospital settings, usually with counseling and behavioral therapies; often called MAT
Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion

Community Conditions

  • Alcohol and drug use

Mental health benefits legislation

Regulate mental health insurance to increase access to mental health services, including treatment for substance use disorders
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

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

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Minimum drinking age laws

Maintain the current legal age when an individual can purchase alcoholic beverages; currently 21 years in all states
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Alcohol and drug use

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

Mobile health for mental health

Deliver health care services and support to individuals with mental health concerns via mobile devices using text messaging or mobile apps
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Mobile reproductive health clinics

Offer reproductive health services (e.g., pregnancy tests, prenatal and postpartum care, gynecological exams, STI screenings, etc.), health education, and social service referrals via medically equipped vans
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices

Multi-component fall prevention interventions for older adults

Provide a fixed, multi-component set of fall prevention interventions to older adults, usually in community settings, without an individualized risk assessment
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Naloxone education & distribution programs

Distribute Naloxone to trained community members and first responders to reverse opioid overdoses
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Alcohol and drug use

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

Nurse practitioner scope of practice

Use regulation to extend nurse practitioners’ (NPs’) scope of practice to provide care to the full scope of their training and skills without physician oversight, especially for primary care
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies
  • Worldviews, culture and norms