Physician Builder Spotlight: Nupur Garg

We’re shining light on MD-entrepreneurs! Each week, we feature an entrepreneurial doctor who’s building a cool product, company, or working on a big idea that you definitely want to know about. This week, meet Dr. Nupur Garg, lifestyle medicine physician and CEO of Pro-Patient Tech (more on the company’s mission below!). You can connect further with Nupur on LinkedIn.

1. Nupur, what inspired you to become a physician entrepreneur? I've been "in healthcare" since I was 4 years old. My parents are both physicians, and I rode the bus home to their office throughout my school years. Over the years, I've watched the situation for physicians become less and less tenable, and I've seen a rapid increase in profits of all the middle-men who don't actually provide healthcare. Meanwhile, patients are getting less healthy. I am a process person at heart, and there was just so much low-hanging fruit when I started as an entrepreneur. Now, I am also passionate about changing the culture of care, which is a much more daunting task, but I think processes have a major role to play in that as well.

2. Tell us what your company does and what problem you're trying to solve. Pro-Patient Tech is the world's first structured database of referenced, evidence-based lifestyle prescriptions. We are working to integrate these into every clinical setting, starting with low fidelity, pdf printouts and moving towards full EHR integration.

3. What's your advice to anyone who's thinking about entrepreneurship or a nontraditional career in medicine? I know it's tempting because you care so much about the problem, but try to think beyond how people "should" behave and think about financial incentives first.

4. How can a physician get over the "start" problem and overcome their biggest fear to start a company or organization? It depends on what their biggest fear is. While formalizing a company can be daunting, I also think people with ideas or small projects initiate the formal organization process a tad too early. For physicians specifically, this is going to sound a tad arrogant, but one mantra I try to say to myself when I feel less confident is: You've proven that you can get to this point. You've gotten through med school, boards, etc. You can do this too.

5. What's the #1 lesson you've learned since building that wasn't obvious to you before? The journey is as much about your personal growth as it is about your company growth.

6. Name the top resources you found most helpful to get going as an entrepreneur? I'm dyslexic, and a poor reader, so first and foremost, I'll say podcasts and audiobooks. One that reshaped how to think about getting feedback was The Mom Test. I also really liked Crossing the Chasm. I was given The Startup of You as a gift, and that helped me understand SaaS. I will say, I think healthcare SaaS is so different than other SaaS though. Now I'm learning about funding structures through various mediums. I'm much more interested in product, so I've put this off for too long.

7. How can other physicians support you? Are you open to connection/investment/user feedback etc.? I'm open to all of the above. I am a connector and love to meet people innovating in this space. I'm reachable at nupur@propatienttech.com. I'm most free on Wednesdays and Fridays, so just shoot over some dates/times that you're free, and I'll send a Zoom invite.

Connect with Nupur on LinkedIn and learn more about her company here.