Our mission
Advancing health without compromise through service, scholarship, science and social responsibility.
Our mission
Our mission, vision and values
UW Health is part of a long UW-Madison tradition of excellence and innovation in the health sciences. From the first premedical "Special Science" course offered in 1887 through the opening in 1924 of Wisconsin General Hospital and the establishment in 1925 of a full four-year medical degree program at the university, UW physicians and researchers have pursued their fourfold mission with vision and vigor.
Over the years, they have achieved numerous breakthroughs in medicine and health care. Their discoveries have helped extend the lives of people throughout the nation and the world.
Our mission, vision and values
As a healthcare organization, we exist for only one reason: Our patients and their families. They are at the center of our work and our mission, values and our vision of remarkable healthcare reflect our promise to them.
Our vision
Remarkable healthcare.
Our values
Excellence
Innovation
Compassion
Integrity
Respect
Accountability
Diversity
Our health system
Where serious conditions meet successful treatment
UW Health is the integrated health system of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, caring for more than 700,000 patients each year with 1,849 employed physicians and 21,000 employees at seven hospitals and more than 80 clinic locations.
UW Health is governed by the UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority and partners with the UW School of Medicine and Public Health to fulfill its patient care, research education and community services missions. The 1,849 faculty of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health engage in research, education and clinical care at locations throughout the UW Health system.
In 2015, SwedishAmerican, a community health system based in Rockford, Ill., with a proud 100-year legacy, became part of UW Health. In 2021, the UW Health brand was introduced at SwedishAmerican’s two hospitals and 30 primary care and multi-specialty clinic locations across Northern Illinois.
Through this partnership, Northern Illinois patients and families have the best of both worlds – a familiar, convenient network of primary and specialty care locations combined with easy access to UW Health experts for highly complex situations, especially for patients with cancer or heart disease. Moreover, mothers and babies – most of whom are cared for at the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Rockford – also have easy access to UW Health Kids Neonatology experts at American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, in situations when a higher level of care is needed.
Facts and figures (pdf)
Our health system
UW Health is a nationally recognized health system that includes:
A 505-bed regional referral center that is home to a Level I adult and pediatric trauma center, American College of Surgeons-verified Burn Center, one of the nation's largest organ transplant programs, one of the nation's first certified comprehensive stroke centers and the UW Carbone Cancer Center, one of 41 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive centers in the country.
A 56-bed, community-based health and wellness facility.
A 111-bed comprehensive pediatric medical and surgical center with pediatric and neonatal surgical intensive care units, Level I pediatric trauma unit, verified Burn Center and a pediatric hybrid catheterization/angiography suite.
This 448-bed community-based hospital provides a complete range of medical and surgical services. UnityPoint Health-Meriter joined UW Health in 2017.
A 50-bed acute inpatient rehabilitation facility for people who have experienced stroke, brain and spinal-cord injuries, amputations, complex orthopedic injuries and other conditions requiring inpatient rehabilitative services.
Serving greater Rockford, northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, SwedishAmerican features a major 339-bed acute care hospital and free-standing outpatient cancer center in Rockford, a medical center in Belvidere, a network of 30 primary care and multi-specialty clinics and the region’s largest home healthcare agency. Learn more
An inpatient/outpatient medical center with 34 beds in Belvidere, Ill.
Beloit Hospital (Beloit, Wis.)
FHN Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center (Ferguson, Ill.)
SwedishAmerican Hospital (Rockford, Ill.)
UW Cancer Center at ProHealth Care (Pewaukee, Wis.)
UW Cancer Center Johnson Creek (Johnson Creek, Wis.)
UW Cancer Center Aspirus Riverview Hospital (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.)
The state’s second-largest medical practice group, representing the 1,785 clinical faculty physicians of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health.
A subsidiary health insurance provider with more than 350,000 members in a 35-county region in Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa.
A not-for-profit membership corporation that facilitates clinical and contracting relationships with insurance companies and regional providers.
Generations Fertility Care
Madison Surgery Center
Transformations Surgery Center
UW Cancer Center Johnson Creek
UW Health Care Direct
Wisconsin Sleep
Awards
National recognition and awards
UW Health is recognized as one of the most progressive and prominent medical centers in the country. The quality of our work is often recognized by influential organizations and media institutions.
Nine years running#1 in Wisconsin - U.S. News & World Report
Healthcare EqualityLeader in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality
Leading in health care"Top 100 Global" according to Newsweek
Leadership and outreach
A commitment to quality and equitable health care
Senior leadership
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Our vision is to be a leader in dismantling racism in ourselves, in our system and in our community.
Population Health
Health is not just driven by clinical care, but also by where you live, work, play and learn.
Additional information
More information to assist you
About UW HealthCorporate governance
Information about UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority Board and UWMF Board of Directors, including the 2021 meeting schedules.
Vendor liaison officeInformation and resources for vendors
The Vendor Liaison Office is responsible for ensuring that vendor personnel register and pay necessary registration fees, and issues identification badges to vendor representatives.