Short Codes in Action in the Military Community

Situation

After deployment in Iraq, Brian struggled with civilian life. A traumatic brain injury made it difficult for him to find sustained work and manage the details of daily life, like keeping track of doctor’s appointments. 

While he knew resources were out there for veterans like him, he found them challenging to find in his rural hometown.
Then a friend and fellow veteran told Brian about a service that could help. 

Simply take a few minutes to sign up, then receive helpful text messages about upcoming doctor visits, medication deliveries, benefit changes, and more, straight to his phone. If he needed to cancel or reschedule an appointment, all you had to do was text back.

Results

Soon after Brian signed up, he started feeling less anxious and more in control. The text notifications helped him keep his medical care on track and kept him informed when unexpected developments arose, like delays in the delivery of his PTSD medication. 

Encouraged by this progress, he started to explore what was possible in other areas of his life—and how short code text messaging services could help. When he enrolled in a local college, text notifications helped him obtain and manage financial support for the program. After he graduated, more veteran resources connected him to a job counselor and a mentor and helped him request on-the-job accommodations.

Solution

Today Brian’s working at a small family accounting firm and exploring housing options for veterans with disabilities. He credits many of these changes to being able to access the resources he needed to help him move forward and plan for his future.