Pharmacy servicesPharmacists at the ready to provide the best possible care

With direct, confidential access to UW Health providers, our pharmacists provide you with the best total patient care.

Overview

A comprehensive resource for your prescription needs

UW Health pharmacists provide expert knowledge in managing your drug therapy. We are available to answer your questions and provide private counseling and education. We are partners in the outcome of your drug therapy. With direct, confidential access to UW Health providers, our pharmacists provide you with the best total patient care. We offer exceptional customer service, with a friendly and caring staff, one-on-one confidential counseling, many convenient locations and mail order in the continental U.S.

Services our pharmacists provide

Our specially trained pharmacists have one goal: to improve the quality-of-life for patients.

Our pharmacists:

  • Are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year

  • Review patient laboratory results and medication history to improve communication

  • Provide one-on-one counseling to manage medications and avoid harmful side effects

  • Collaborate with providers to coordinate medication refills and renewals

  • Are experts in chronic illnesses or issues such as transplants, HIV/AIDS, cystic fibrosis, diabetes and heart disease

  • Offer expertise in injectable medications

Payment and billing

Prescriptions are billed directly to most insurance plans and government programs, such as Medicare, Medical Assistance, Wisconsin Chronic Disease Programs, Ryan White and many more. Our insurance experts are available to serve you. Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express credit cards accepted.

Community pharmacies

Our pharmacists at your clinic

Log in to MyChart or call your community pharmacy for refill requests.

If you would like to change your prescription to a walk-in UW Health pharmacy:

  1. Call the UW Health Pharmacy you would like to use for your prescriptions.

  2. Tell our pharmacists which prescriptions you would like transferred and where they were last filled.

  3. Tell our pharmacists which refill option you prefer: pick-up, delivery or delivery by mail.

Services available at community pharmacies

Protect yourself from illness with immunizations. UW Health pharmacists are certified to provide immunizations against influenza, shingles, tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis.

Our pharmacists offer complete counseling services, including medication teaching guides and free, private consultation. In addition to a prescription label, we print a drug information form for you, providing details specific to your medication.

We encourage you to call our pharmacists with any questions about your medications.

A medication check-up is a one-on-one appointment with a pharmacist to talk about all of your prescription and over-the-counter medications. These visits strive to help patients meet treatment goals and improve health. We screen for:

  • Medication interactions and side effects

  • How well your medications are working

  • Whether medications may be needed or not

  • How to help you remember your medications

  • Possible cost savings

All recommendations are shared with your provider for approval. To make an appointment, please call (608) 890-5822. Appointments last from 30 to 60 minutes.

Medication check-ups are available at:



The UW Medication Assistance Program (MAP) can assist patients who cannot afford their medications. MAP can help patients enroll in manufacturer-supplied free drug programs, co-pay assistance, foundations/grants, etc.

  • Location: University Hospital, 600 Highland Ave., Room H6/210, Madison, WI 53792

  • Phone: (608) 262-6443

Locations

Convenience across the region

Log in to MyChart or call your community pharmacy for refill requests.

If you would like to change your prescription to a walk-in UW Health pharmacy:

  1. Call the UW Health Pharmacy you would like to use for your prescriptions.

  2. Tell our pharmacists which prescriptions you would like transferred and where they were last filled.

  3. Tell our pharmacists which refill option you prefer: pick-up, delivery or delivery by mail.

Our community pharmacies

  • Location: 1 S Park St., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 287-2400

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 1102 S. Park St., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30-5:30 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 287-5885

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap)

  • Location: 5249 E. Terrace Dr., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30-5:30 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 265-1650

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 4602 Eastpark Blvd., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 240-4265

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 451 Junction Rd., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30-5 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 265-7070

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 3209 Dryden Dr., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30-5:30 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 241-9638

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose), varicella zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 2402 Winnebago St., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 242-6862

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 202 S. Park St., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-8 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 9 a.m-3 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 417-6009

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose), Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis (Tdap) , Pneumococcal Conjugate (PCV 13), Pneumococcal Polysaccharide (PPSV23), and Varicella Zoster (Shingrix).

  • Location: 600 Highland Ave., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 263-1280

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

  • Location: 7102 Mineral Point Rd., Madison

  • Hours: Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30-5:30 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

  • Phone: (608) 828-7688

  • Vaccines: Influenza (quadrivalent and high dose); Varicella Zoster (Shingrix) for shingles; Tetanus and diphtheria (Td); and Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap).

Other services

Our programs

Enroll in UW Health's free mail delivery service and your medications will be mailed directly to your home.

There are two ways to enroll in mail service:

A pharmacy team member will contact you to review your medication needs and work with your current pharmacy to transfer your prescriptions to UW Health. 

UW Health Authorization to Deliver Prescriptions Form

UW Health inpatient pharmacists collaborate with all members of the health care team, patients and their caregivers to provide patient care services. Pharmacy technicians, pharmacist assistants and pharmacy students assist in the delivery of pharmaceutical care under the direct supervision of a pharmacist.

UW Health is a nationally recognized leader in the provision of high-quality, patient-centered inpatient pharmacy services. Areas of national preeminence include patient safety, innovative use of technology and automation, drug use policy, and training future leaders for the profession of pharmacy.

UW Health has been named the top hospital in Wisconsin by U.S News & World Report magazine for the last 10 years. In addition, UW Health is home of the UW Carbone Cancer Center, one of 41 federally designated centers for cancer treatment and research, and has one of the largest organ transplant programs in the nation. The department's drug distribution system is heavily supported, using automation and innovative robotic and point-of-care technology, which is supported by a fully integrated information system and network.

Pharmacy inpatient services process

  • Upon admission, each patient's medical record is reviewed and the patient is interviewed by a pharmacist to obtain an accurate admission medication history. This facilitates the pharmacist's ability to document current medications, document compliance, ascertain what the patient took on the day of admission, understand the past medical history and history of present illness, review all allergies, identify adverse drug reactions and be involved with caring for issues such as alcohol, tobacco use and immunization status.

  • All new medication orders are reviewed for appropriateness by a pharmacist to determine and eliminate any medication therapy problems.

  • Pharmaceutical needs of the patient are reassessed as needed or as the patient's condition changes.

  • Pharmacists prescribe drug therapy regimens as authorized by hospital protocols, including ordering of tests and laboratory values to monitor drug therapy for appropriateness.

  • Patient progress and medication recommendations are communicated to the primary provider and documented in the electronic medical record.

  • Pharmacists play a key role in discharge plans for patients with discharge medications, including educating patients and/or caregivers, facilitating continuity of care, assisting with reimbursement issues, providing medication adherence aids and documenting all activities in the medical record.

  • Pharmacists control the drug distribution systems to ensure that the right medication and the right dose is administered via the right route to the right patient at the right time, as well as maintain the safety of the medication use system.

  • Pharmacists assist in the development, implementation and maintenance of decision support software systems aimed at decreasing costs and improving the quality of care.

  • Pharmacists help to educate future caregivers by precepting pharmacy students and pharmacy residents and are involved with continuing education by providing inservices

  • Pharmacy staff coordinates the storage, preparation and distribution of all medications, including sterile products, and ensure full compliance with national standards of practice .

  • Pharmacy staff members monitor medication shortages, and when necessary, work with physicians to determine appropriate alternative therapies.

  • The pharmacy department periodically conducts patient and internal customer satisfaction surveys to determine customer expectations and to identify performance improvement initiatives. The results of those surveys are used to improve pharmacy services by aligning services to patient needs and expectations.

Specialty Pharmacy Program

The UW Health Specialty Pharmacy assists patients who are taking complicated, high-cost medications called specialty medications. Many of these specialty medications require monitoring by specially trained pharmacists, special storage and handling, and might not be readily available at local pharmacies.

  • Once enrolled, you can have your prescriptions shipped directly to you or choose to pick up your prescriptions at UW Health Specialty Pharmacy.

  • All packages are properly insulated according to their temperature requirements.

  • Once enrolled, your pharmacist will reach out periodically to discuss your personalized medication needs prior to shipping any medications.

  • Your pharmacist will contact your doctor for refills if your prescription runs out

A logo showing specialty pharmacy acceditation from the Utilization Review Accreditation Commission
Accredited by the Utilization Review Accreditation Commission
URAC listing
The Accreditation Commission for Health Care logo
Accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care

Immunizations

Prevention is the best defense

UW Health Pharmacy Services can help you and your family stay healthy. Our pharmacists administer vaccines to help you avoid illness, including seasonal influenza, shingles, tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis.

Vaccines available

  • UW Health's certified pharmacists provide vaccinations to patients age 6 years old and older.

  • Vaccines in the pharmacy are convenient; you can walk in and receive your vaccination during normal business hours or call ahead to schedule an appointment.

  • The cost is often covered by insurance. Contact the pharmacy to see if your insurance covers the vaccine.

  • The typical flu season is September thru February. Contact the pharmacy for vaccine availability.  

  • Prior to receiving a vaccine, patients are required to complete a vaccine consent form (pdf).

Resources

Available at these locations

  • Shingles is a skin rash that is often painful and caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox.

  • In October 2017, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new vaccine to protect against shingles, also known as Herpes Zoster.

  • The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) made recommendations for the use of Shingrix prevent shingles disease.

  • The ACIP recommends that Shingrix be preferred over Zostavax because Shingrix is more effective and protects patients longer.

  • Persons who previously received Zostavax should also receive Shingrix.

  • Shingrix is not a live vaccine and can be given to individuals with immune disorders.

  • UW Health's certified pharmacists provide the Shingrix vaccine to patients 50 years of age and older.

  • Shingrix does not treat shingles or shingles-related pain. Shingrix is approved to help prevent shingles and is provided as a two-dose series.

  • Side effects, such as pain, redness and swelling, are common after getting Shingrix. Patients can lessen these symptoms by using over-the-counter medications or placing cool compresses where they received the injection.

Insurance information

  • Since the vaccine is approved for patients 50 years and older, there might be issues with different insurance programs regarding where Shingrix can be given (clinic or pharmacy) based on your insurance plan.

  • Please contact your insurance provider to verify coverage prior to receiving the vaccine.

Resources

Available at these locations

  • UW Health's certified pharmacists provide the Td and Tdap vaccine to patients 11 years of age and older

  • Td is a combination vaccine that protects against tetanus and diphtheria, two potentially life-threatening bacterial diseases.

  • Tdap is a combination vaccine that protects against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (whooping cough), three potentially life-threatening bacterial diseases.

Insurance information

  • If you have private insurance or Medicaid, your plan might cover the vaccine. Please contact your insurer to find out.

  • Many Medicare Part D plans cover Tdap and Td for prevention. The co-pay (money you have to pay) for vaccination varies.

  • Medicare Part B does not cover the vaccine unless it is for an injury

  • The Tdap vaccine requires a prescription from your doctor

  • Contact the pharmacy to set up an appointment and for vaccine availability

  • Prior to receiving a vaccine, patients are required to complete a vaccine consent form

Resources

Available at these locations

Medication disposal

What to do with old or unused medicine

Do you have old or unused medicine in your home? If you do, don't flush it. Learn more about your options to safely dispose of unused medications: 

Health Facts for You: Medicine Disposal (includes a list of Madison-area MedDrop box locations)

U.S. Food and Drug Administration: How to Dispose of Unused Medicines

UW Health take-back bins

Safely dispose of unused and unwanted medications at special take-back bins, located in several UW Health pharmacies in Madison and available during normal pharmacy hours. Medications must be placed into the receptacle by the patient or their delegate. Staff members are not permitted to accept medications for disposal.

  • Accepted: Pills, capsules. Please remove medications from the container and dispose the loose pills/capsules in the bins.

  • Not accepted : Lotions, liquids, schedule I controlled substances, illicit drugs, epi pens, inhalers, aerosols, cans, needles, thermometers.

Locations

Resources

Additional programs

Pharmacy services programs

Education and training programs

Resources