At a Glance 

What works in public health? The Guide to Community Preventive Services (Community 

Guide) provides public health decision makers with recommendations regarding populationbased interventions to promote health and to prevent disease, injury, disability, and premature 

death, appropriate for use by communities and health care systems. The independent Task 

Force on Community Preventive Services, makes its recommendations based on systematic 

reviews of topics in three general areas: changing risk behaviors; reducing diseases, injuries 

and impairments; and addressing environmental and ecosystem challenges (see Am J Prev 

Med 2000; 18 (1S): 18-26). The Community Guide is a federally sponsored initiative and is part 

of a family of federal public health initiatives including Healthy People 2010 and the Guide to 

Clinical Preventive Services. 

Systematic reviews are conducted for selected interventions within each health topic and 

organized as a Achapter@. Within the Community Guide, systematic reviews evaluate the 

evidence of effectiveness which is then translated into a recommendation or a finding of 

insufficient evidence. For those interventions where there is insufficient evidence of 

effectiveness, the Community Guide will provide guidance for further prevention research. 

However, it is important to note that a determination that evidence is insufficient should 

not be confused with evidence of ineffectiveness. 

More information about the Community Guide (including links to a variety of resources) are 

available at http://www.thecommunityguide.org. Community Guide topics are also published in 

supplements to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Topic Brief Description Publication Date 

Changing Health Risk Behaviors

Tobacco 

Product Use 

Prevention and 

Control

An in-depth review of interventions designed to prevent initiation of 

tobacco use, to increase or improve cessation, and to reduce exposure 

to environmental tobacco smoke through the use of: February 2001 

$ policies 

$ mass media strategies 

$ health care system strategies to 

improve the delivery of effective 

cessation therapies 

Alcohol Abuse Investigates the prevention of alcohol abuse and misuse via: Winter 2004* 

$ policy development 

$ skills development 

$ provider directed interventions 

$ information dissemination 

$ social influence and modeling 

Physical Activity

Reviews effectiveness of interventions to increase exercise 

opportunities and facilitate and maintain changes in knowledge/ 

attitudes about physical activity through: 

October 2001 

$ School-based, skills-oriented 

interventions 

$ Health education classes 

$ Organizational policies 

$ Social support mechanisms 

$ Behavioral reinforcements 

$ Physical environmental changes 
Topic Brief Description Publication Date 

Changing Health Risk Behaviors

HIV, STD and unintended pregnancy prevention through

Sexual Behavior

$ education and counseling 

$ service delivery and referral 

$ HIV counseling and testing 

$ media campaigns 

$ policy 

$ youth development programs 

$ strengthening family, social 

networks and other support 

systems 

Spring 2004* 

Addressing Specific Health Conditions 

Increase vaccination coverage levels in children, adolescents, and 

adults by utilizing interventions designed to increase community 

demand, provide provider education and enhance access to 

vaccination services such as:

Vaccine 

Preventable 

Diseases $ health care system 

strategies 

$ mass media campaigns 

$ policies 

January 2000 

Cancer

Addresses interventions to: 

$ improve the use of breast, cervical, and colo-rectal cancer screening 

$ improve informed decision making about cancer screening 

$ reduce the occurrence of skin cancer. 

Fall 2003* 

For persons with diabetes, examines the effect of health care system 

and community interventions on: 

Diabetes $ behavior change 

$ glycemic control 

$ long-term clinical and economic 

outcomes 

$ quality of life 

September 2001 

Investigates interventions with a focus on the prevention of depression 

and the co-occurrence of depression with other mental and physical 

Mental Health conditions including:

$ relapse/recurrence 

prevention 

$ provider screening training 

$ policy interventions. 

Spring 2004* 

Addresses intervention 

strategies to:

Interventions focus on:

Motor Vehicle 

Occupant Injury $ promote child safety seat use

$ promote safety belt use 

$ reduce alcohol-impaired 

driving 

$ laws 

$ enforcement 

$ communitywide behavioral 

interventions 

May 2001 

Reviews intervention strategies for preventing 

Oral Health $ dental caries $ oral and pharyngeal cancers 

$ oral and facial injuries 

November 2001 

Examines the following interventions to reduce violent behavior: 

Violence $ home visitation for high risk 

families 

$ social skill development 

$ community policing 

$ community organizing projects 

$ anti-hate crime programs 

$ therapeutic foster care 

Spring 2003* 

Addressing the Environment 

Based on the premise that health is a product of social institutions and 

processes, interventions being examined are:

Sociocultural 

Environment $ residential mixed income 

housing 

$ access to quality health care for all 

ages 

$ early childhood development 

programs 

February 2002 

* Denotes tentative date of publication 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports the independent Task Force on 

Community Preventive Services 

For more information see www.thecommunityguide.org