BetterRx

mobile site
Homepage
Select a prescription
Filter by pharmacy

Inspiration

For our project we decided to address the Health and Wellness challenge to try to tackle the issues surrounding accessibility to affordable prescription drugs in America. We were inspired by the lack of transparency surrounding prescription costs and information.

What it does

Our platform, BetterRx, would be able to offer users prescriptions at a discount price, bypassing insurance, and saving patients thousands. To do so, our platform would use a geolocation filtering algorithm that would allow users to input the medication they need, from a prescription written by their doctor. From there our map would show them the pharmacies in the area and the price of the medication. Users would then be able to filter the results according to their needs.

How we built it

To create BetterRx, we first had to create a database containing information about local pharmacy locations, prescriptions and the prices at which they’re offered at different pharmacies. We created an API that retrieves the selected medication and pharmacy filter, if selected, data from our SQL database. The return data will appear on the Google Maps implemented on the web page. The pharmacy locations appear as the markers, and the markers contain a container that displays the following information: retailer, pharmacy address, medication price, and a Get Directions option. We then linked the front end design to the back end to incorporate the geofiltering into the website.

Challenges we ran into

Finding the correct APIs for mapping, and finding a free database containing all CVS, RiteAid, ShopRite, etc. locations. To save costs, we researched local pharmacy locations and their medication prices to create our own database. It was also difficult for all five team members to work on the same file. We split into two groups, one group working on styling of the webpage while the other worked on the backend and functionality. At the end we combined the two files together.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We were able to work together as a team to make a product that we are all proud of. With this collaboration, we were able to share ideas and brainstorm to create prototype for BetterRX. Something we are especially proud of is our use of our own API while integrating it with a Google Maps API.

What we learned

Effective communication is important so all team members have the same goal and know their part in the project. We also learned how to incorporate backend APIs to the front end.

What's next for BetterRx

In the future, we hope to make it more accessible to smaller local pharmacies so that it can be more inclusive to customers that don’t live near corporate pharmacies. In addition to this we will add more pages to the website to include more features and filters along with upgrading the UX.