The Community Health Promotion Handbook:
Action Guides to Improve Community Health

This publication can be downloaded free of charge at www.prevent.org/actionguides. Printed copies of the complete handbook or individual action guides can be purchased at the same Web address.

Partnership for Prevention^® and CDC's Healthy Communities Program have developed The Community Health Promotion Handbook: Action Guides to Improve Community Health, an evidence-based tool that bridges the gap between research and practice. Five selected recommendations from the Task Force on Community Preventive Services’ The Guide to Community Preventive Services: What Works to Promote Health? have been translated into action guides that provide public health practitioners and others interested in health promotion with the necessary “how to” guidance to implement effective community-level strategies.

These implementation guidelines have emerged from the experiences of the Steps communities supported by CDC's Healthy Communities Program, which is creating models for how local communities can address chronic diseases. Although The Community Health Promotion Handbook’s action guides primarily target public health practitioners, other audiences also may benefit from using this resource, including local planners, advocates, policy makers, community and business leaders, community-based organizations, educators, health care providers, and others interested in improving health in their communities.

In addition to detailed action steps for planning, implementing, and evaluating a strategy, features in each action guide include

• An overview of the recommendation and supporting evidence.
• Links to tools and resources for planning and implementation.
• Tips for implementation and overcoming potential obstacles.
• Suggested personnel, material, and financial resource needs.
• Questions and potential data sources for evaluation planning.

The Handbook’s five action guides cover the following topics:

Diabetes Management

• Diabetes Self-Management Education (DSME): Establishing a Community-Based DSME Program for Adults with Type 2 Diabetes to Improve Glycemic Control

Physical Activity

• Places for Physical Activity: Facilitating Development of a Community Trail and Promoting Its Use to Increase Physical Activity Among Youth and Adults
   
• School-Based Physical Education: Working with Schools to Increase Physical Activity Among Children and Adolescents in Physical Education Classes
   
• Social Support for Physical Activity: Establishing a Community-Based Walking Group Program to Increase Physical Activity Among Youth and Adults

Tobacco-Use Treatment

• Healthcare Provider Reminder Systems, Provider Education, and Patient Education: Working with Healthcare Delivery Systems to Improve the Delivery of Tobacco-Use Treatment to Patients

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