 As part of Sarasota Memorial’s mission to continuously improve patient care, we have partnered with national drugstore chain Walgreens to offer a convenient hospital bedside delivery option for prescription medications. The program, which is currently available to patients in the hospital’s mother/baby and cardiac units, is set to roll out hospital-wide in the coming months. Sarasota Memorial is Walgreens’ exclusive hospital partner in Sarasota County.
Walgreens Serves Main Hospital Campus
With a full-service Walgreens pharmacy now open on the main hospital campus, patients can have their prescriptions quickly filled and delivered directly to their room prior to being discharged, eliminating a tedious extra stop between hospital and home. Patients who want the Walgreens service simply fill out a request form that their nurse faxes to the pharmacy, along with the prescriptions. Walgreens handles any insurance authorization, then fills and delivers the order directly to the patient.
Beyond providing an easy, time-saving option for obtaining prescriptions and supplies, the Walgreens program can also help improve patients’ compliance to take medications as prescribed by their physicians, which in turn, can help speed recovery.
Located in Waldemere Medical Plaza, the pharmacy is also a convenient resource for hospital visitors and staff. A condensed version of a typical Walgreens, the store stocks greeting cards, toiletries, snacks, medical supplies, and over-the-counter medicines. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Benefits to patients include:
- Simple fax request system
- Free patient hotline for medication consultation with the pharmacist
- Fast, bedside delivery of physician-ordered prescriptions and supplies
- Time-saving option eases transition from hospital to home
- Turn-key service improves compliance to take medicines as prescribed
- Convenient one-stop resource for cards, snacks, etc. for hospital visitors
 Partnership Extends to North Port ER and Our 2 Walk-In Medical Centers
Sarasota Memorial’s partnership with Walgreens also benefits patients at our Emergency Care Center in North Port. When patients are prescribed medications by their ER physician – and they choose Walgreens pharmacy – they can fill out a request form to order medications. The form is faxed or called in to the nearby Walgreens (corner of Toledo Blade Blvd. and Price Blvd.), where it’s filled and ready for the patient to pick up after being discharged from the ER.
Starting November 1, 2009, Walgreens will offer direct delivery to patient’s ER bedside, Monday-Friday, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Patients who visit Sarasota Memorial’s two Walk-In clinics (at University Parkway and at Gulf Gate) also have the option to have prescriptions faxed or called in to the most convenient local Walgreens.
Coming soon, Walgreens will add to the Sarasota Memorial patient request form additional options for patients to order durable medical equipment, such as walkers, canes, braces, etc. |
