Jon Stojan
Image credit: Falguni Mehrotra
The healthcare industry needs robust, reliable systems, where all providers – from nurses and doctors to pharmacists – have access to up to date, accurate patient information so they can properly deliver quality patient care.
However, communication between departments has historically been a challenge in the industry, with disconnected data systems and outdated infrastructures struggling to keep up with the sector’s growing digital demands. These issues can result in serious consequences, such as misdiagnoses, delays in care, and poor patient outcomes.
Falguni Mehrotra, a product manager with over a decade of experience in healthcare, has been tackling these issues head-on by developing systems that integrate patient records into unified platforms and implementing contactless services for pharmacies nationwide. These initiatives have helped professionals collaborate between departments, navigate high-demand periods like the COVID-19 pandemic, and deliver consistent, quality care to millions of patients.
Tackling Fragmented Data with Dr. Update
Mehrotra’s career didn’t begin in healthcare. After earning her Bachelor’s in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Rajasthan Technical University, she began working as a business analyst at several small tech firms, where she gained experience in both business operations and technical systems.
Her first job in the field came in 2014 at the American software company Netsmartz, where she was tasked with developing a unified platform for healthcare providers to share and exchange information.
This project aimed to tackle the widespread problem of fragmented U.S. healthcare data. There are currently over 2,000 disconnected datasets holding crucial patient information across hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies, with no standardized way to share or update these records, often forcing staff to exchange them manually. This lack of coordination not only slows down care but also increases the risk of human error.
Mehrotra’s solution was the development of Dr. Update, a data consolidation framework that takes patient information from multiple sources and converts it into a single electronic health record. This allows multiple parties — including doctors, nurses, administrators, and pharmacists — to access, edit, and share patient data through a unified platform.
This system effectively streamlined communication across departments by alerting all parties of key patient updates in real-time. For example, nurses could enter observations into the system directly after a check-up, while doctors could issue a virtual prescription, immediately notifying the patient’s chosen pharmacy to begin preparation.
Mehrotra also focused on making the platform user-friendly and easy for anyone to use. She developed an accessible interface that required little training for healthcare professionals, helping hospitals and clinics adopt the system quickly and with minimal disruptions.
By developing a single point of access for patient information, Mehrotra provided professionals with a complete view of their patients’ health, allowing them to make informed treatment decisions, improve interdepartmental collaboration, and provide coordinated, high-quality care. What began as a solution for one healthcare provider quickly became a model for the entire industry. Dr. Update’s success demonstrated that unified health records were not just technically feasible but essential for modern healthcare delivery. The system’s architecture influenced several major hospital networks to adopt similar integrated data approaches, leading to a broader industry shift toward interoperable healthcare systems.
Streamlining Pharmacy Services in a Time of Crisis
After the success of Dr. Update, Mehrotra developed a stronger interest in tech. She pursued a Master’s in Engineering and Industrial Management from St. Cloud State University and began working as a product manager at real estate companies like PropCo and Compass.
In 2020, she joined Zenith Infotek, an IT consulting firm with several healthcare-related clients, just as the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hit. This was a pivotal moment for the industry, as traditional in-person interactions were no longer viable and the health sector made an abrupt shift toward digitalization, with tools like remote patient monitoring, wearable devices, and mobile health apps quickly becoming integral to patient care.
This greatly affected pharmacies across the country, as the pandemic drove an unprecedented surge in the use of virtual prescriptions, with over 1.9 billion processed in 2020 alone. Mehrotra faced these challenges first-hand when she was assigned to work with CVS Pharmacy, one of the largest pharmacy chains in the U.S.
CVS needed a platform that could meet this growing demand by providing a contactless, reliable service to its millions of clients. To address this, Mehrotra developed an online drug delivery system that enabled patients to order their medications online and pick them up safely at their chosen CVS location.
The system worked by taking in prescriptions from health providers, notifying CVS branches to prepare the orders, and tracking their progress to ensure they are ready for pickup by the time the patient arrives. By automating these key steps, the platform not only streamlined the delivery process but also minimized direct contact between patients and staff.
Designed within a tight five-month timeframe, the system successfully integrated with CVS’s existing online infrastructure, quickly gaining adoption by over 80% of CVS customers as a faster and more convenient way to access their medication. With this system in place, Mehrotra helped millions across the country access their prescriptions with minimal delays, all while keeping patients and pharmacy staff safe during an unprecedented period of disruption.
The success of Mehrotra’s pharmacy automation system at CVS sparked a transformation across the entire pharmacy sector. Regional pharmacy chains, observing the dramatic improvements in efficiency and customer satisfaction at CVS, began developing their own versions of contactless delivery systems. The platform’s innovative architecture became a blueprint for pharmacy automation across the country, demonstrating how traditional pharmacies could rapidly modernize their operations while maintaining reliability and security.
Reshaping Healthcare with Technology
Mehrotra’s innovations have fundamentally reshaped how the healthcare sector approaches digital transformation. Through her work, she has established new standards for patient data security and accessibility that continue to influence healthcare technology development. The success of her pharmacy automation system has established new benchmarks for modernizing prescription services, proving that large-scale digital transformation can enhance both efficiency and patient care.
Since her time in healthcare, Mehrotra has received industry-wide recognition for her work as a product manager in the field, including receiving a Global Recognition Award in 2024. Today, she works at the Expedia Group, where she’s been tasked with the development of systems that help elevate the traveler experience, such as improving loyalty programs to offer customized deals and discounts.
Falguni Mehrotra’s work highlights how the healthcare sector can harness digital tools to make healthcare delivery more efficient and accessible through systems. By creating platforms that unify patient records and improve drug delivery systems during critical times, Mehrotra is helping providers simplify their operations to focus on what matters most: delivering quality care to the people they serve.