United Way for Greater Austin is excited to announce the launch of the 2-1-1 Austin mobile app to help community members navigate the complex system of health and human services in Central Texas. The app will allow users to get to the assistance they need quickly, anonymously and from the convenience of their mobile device. In 2015, UWATX’s 2-1-1 call center, which has the most up to date, comprehensive directory for social services information, handled more than 300,000 calls, each representing a person in need of assistance. From mothers who need food for their children, to working families who cannot afford to pay their utility bills, or a dialysis patient trying to coordinate transportation to medical appointments, 2-1-1 can direct users to more than 30,000 social service resources. The app also makes it easy to call 2-1-1 directly when a human touch is required. “The 2-1-1 Austin app will streamline access to social services information, ensuring crucial information is available when and where it is needed,” said Jon Armstrong, UWATX Board Member. “We are grateful for the valuable support from Cerebri and IBM to provide the tools and expertise to help United Way for Greater Austin’s 2-1-1 call center reach more people in need.” Users can simply download the app from the app store and enter their zip code to connect to the most relevant resources based on their needs and location. Users can either find these resources through a robust set of resource-matching tools to obtain a list of […]
Read MoreUT Austin Students Win $100,000 to Build and Launch 2-1-1 App
Need help finding access to temporary housing, food banks or health services? You can always call 2-1-1 at anytime–but soon there will also be an app for that. A team of University of Texas at Austin students spent last fall developing a smartphone app called “CallScout,” designed to help Austin residents have easier access to social services information. VP of UWATX’s 2-1-1 Navigation Center, Kay Garza, said this app is an important step to bringing information to more low-income individuals because they are more likely to have phone internet access than home internet access. The project took these 12 students to New York in January, where they competed against student teams from other schools, such as Stanford and UC Berkeley, for the grand $100,000 Watson University Competition prize—and won! The app uses Watson technology developed by IBM. Watson is a supercomputer that can quickly sift through large amounts of information to answer complex questions, keeping “in mind” natural speech nuances. CallScout allows users to ask Watson a complete question, i.e. “Where can I find food for my family?” The app will then list nearest food pantries based on the user’s location, along with contact information, hours of service and user reviews. It also allows users to create their own review of the service received, so others using the app may see useful information when choosing a service to best fit their needs. The UT Austin students created a video showing exactly how the CallScout app will function. The Navigation Center […]
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