Strategies

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

62 Strategies
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School nutrition standards

Regulate the quality of food that can be sold to students through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), à la carte options, vending machines, etc.
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Diet and exercise
  • Climate

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

School or community-based abstinence-only education

Promote abstinence from sexual activity, generally only with mention of condoms and birth control to highlight failure rates
Evidence Rating:
Mixed Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Sexual activity

Scrap programs for old vehicles

Provide incentives to trade in old cars or light duty trucks with low fuel efficiency and high emissions and buy new vehicles with higher efficiency and lower emissions; also called scrappage or vehicle early retirement programs
Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion

Community Conditions

  • Air, water and land
  • Climate

Teen pregnancy prevention programs

Support school-, community-, and clinic-based teen pregnancy prevention programs such as comprehensive sex education, HIV/STI prevention and youth development efforts, service learning, etc.
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Sexual activity

Telemedicine

Deliver consultative, diagnostic, and treatment services remotely, especially for patients who live in areas with limited access to care or who experience transportation or mobility barriers; sometimes called telehealth
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care
  • Climate

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices

Telemental health services

Provide mental health care services (e.g., psychotherapy or counseling) via telephone or videoconference
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Clinical care
  • Climate

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices

Urban agriculture

Support food-producing and income-earning activities in urban environments (e.g., edible landscapes, front yard or rooftop gardens, window farming, hydroponics, livestock, etc.)
Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion

Community Conditions

  • Diet and exercise
  • Climate
  • Civic and community resources

Vehicle anti-idling initiatives

Implement anti-idling policies and awareness campaigns to reduce engine idling for passenger vehicles, school buses, and/or equipment and truck fleets
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Air, water and land
  • Climate

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

Vehicle inspection & maintenance (I/M) programs

Require scheduled testing of vehicles’ tailpipe and evaporative emissions; federally mandated in areas with particularly poor air quality
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Air, water and land
  • Climate