Strategies

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

11 Strategies matching depression
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Families and Schools Together

Convene small groups of families for facilitated weekly meetings that include a family meal, structured activities, parent support time, and parent-child play therapy
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Education
  • Safety and social support

Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8)

Provide eligible families with low and very low incomes with vouchers to help cover the costs of rental housing; also called Section 8
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Housing and transportation

Societal Rules

  • Budgets

Later middle and high school start times

Delay school start times for middle and high schools to better align with adolescent sleep-wake cycles; often until 8:30 a.m. or later
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Education

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)

Provide funds to households with low incomes to meet home energy needs, especially for households with children, older adults, or individuals with disabilities
Evidence Rating:
Expert Opinion

Community Conditions

  • Housing and transportation

Societal Rules

  • Budgets

Reach Out and Read

Partner with doctors, nurse practitioners, and other medical professionals to incorporate literacy support into regular well-child visits, especially in lower income communities
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Education
  • Safety and social support

School and district level zero tolerance policies

Require school officials to apply predetermined consequences for certain infractions, regardless of situational context or circumstances; consequences are usually severe (e.g., suspension or expulsion)
Evidence Rating:
Evidence of Ineffectiveness

Community Conditions

  • Education

Societal Rules

  • Laws and policies

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

Community Conditions

  • Education
  • Clinical care

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices

School-based social and emotional instruction

Implement focused efforts to help children recognize and manage emotions, set and reach goals, appreciate others’ perspectives, and maintain relationships; also called social and emotional learning (SEL)
Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported

Community Conditions

  • Education

School-based trauma counseling

Help students process trauma exposure and develop coping skills through individual or small group counseling with mental health professionals or school staff with trauma-specific training
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Education

Trauma-informed schools

Adopt a multi-tiered approach within schools to address the needs of trauma-exposed youth, including school-wide changes, screenings, and individual intensive support
Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence

Community Conditions

  • Education
  • Safety and social support

Societal Rules

  • Institutional practices