Beyond Prescriptions
With the opening of Oakwood Pharmacy’s new location on the Prairie Ridge campus, we asked Angela Studnicka, Director of the Oakwood Pharmacy, to answer a few questions.
Why is Oakwood bringing a pharmacy to Prairie Ridge?
In the 30+ years the Oakwood Pharmacy has existed, the focus of the pharmacy team has been to provide quality pharmacy services and support safe and effective medication use. Establishing a physical presence on the Prairie Ridge campus ensures the Oakwood Pharmacy is able to fulfill this goal for the Prairie Ridge community.
How many apartment home residents are getting pharmacy services now?
The Oakwood Pharmacy currently services approximately 250-300 independent living residents between the two campuses.
What are the key benefits of using the Oakwood Pharmacy for Oakwood residents?
• Extensive experience: Our pharmacist team comes from a variety of backgrounds serving older adults with combined years of experience exceeding 100 years! They’ve worked as technicians, served as pharmacy school faculty, overseen clinical services such as immunizations, served as consultant pharmacists for assisted living and skilled nursing facilities, and some even carry the credentials of a Board Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (BCGP).
• Integration with the Oakwood Village care team: Oakwood Pharmacy provides pharmacy services for residents in our assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing facilities. When residents transition to a new level of care at Oakwood, having a pharmacy familiar with your prescription history makes a difference. Medication reconciliation at each of these transitions of care ensures an accurate and complete medication history.
• Advocacy: The Oakwood Pharmacy team includes a billing specialist with extensive experience in prescription billing and coordination of benefits. Having this resource means the pharmacy team advocates for you when prescription formularies change, prior authorizations are required, or alternative medication options are needed due to side effects, allergies or other factors.
What are the strengths of the Oakwood Pharmacy?
• Accessibility: The Oakwood Pharmacy has a pharmacist on-call 24/7, 365 days a year — this includes after-hours, weekends and holidays. You don’t have to wait for your medication to arrive in the mail or make a trip on your way home from urgent care; our team brings your medication to you. During scheduled hours, you can reach us and talk to our staff without long hold times or having to leave a message. And, with our campuses beginning to return to “normal” post-COVID, you’ll be able to
stop by the pharmacy to ask questions, pick up over the-counter items or devices, or just discuss the
latest Brewers game.
• Familiarity: The Oakwood Pharmacy team takes pride in getting to know our customers like family by learning about your background and life experiences. We are a small team of less than 20 so you get to know our names, voices and faces. We are dedicated to taking care of your prescription needs and are excited to welcome new and current residents to the Oakwood Pharmacy family.
What are the most popular services the Oakwood Pharmacy provides to its customers?
- Free delivery directly to your door by pharmacy staff
- Auto-Fill, an optional service residents can utilize to have their routine, chronic medications filled and delivered automatically each month
- On-site vaccine clinics, typically in the fall for the annual influenza vaccine, but most recently for COVID-19 vaccines
- Adherence options, including weekly med boxes organized by time of day with a color-coded med list showing how many medications are taken at each time and what each looks like
How cost-competitive is Oakwood Pharmacy compared to Walgreens, Walmart, CVS, etc., for prescriptions and over-the-counter?
In general, while we may not stock bulk quantities of over-the-counter items, the Oakwood Pharmacy
is extremely cost-competitive. There are outliers, but these are typically due to the limited storage space of Oakwood Pharmacy; we can’t purchase large cases of items to get the best pricing.
As it relates to prescription items, Oakwood Pharmacy accepts ALL Part D plans in Wisconsin, and out-of-pocket costs (i.e., copays) are determined by your individual plan. Some of these plans may offer reduced fees for 90-day supplies or use of preferred mail-order pharmacy. We recognize cost is a factor in selecting a pharmacy; however, the convenience of direct-to-door delivery, pharmacists with older adult-focused knowledge and education, and a relationship with accessible pharmacy team members may help
justify these costs.
What is the process to switch pharmacies? Would you consider it easy?
The process of switching pharmacies is easy, and the Oakwood Pharmacy staff takes care of all the legwork from start to finish.
Can you describe the process and how quickly a person can get their prescriptions transferred over to Oakwood Pharmacy from places like Walgreens or CVS?
If interested in switching pharmacies, simply complete an Oakwood Pharmacy Medication Transfer Form. We ask for basic background information, your medical and prescription history, and current pharmacy. The Oakwood Pharmacy staff will review the form and reach out if they have questions; otherwise, we will contact your current pharmacy to request prescription transfers. This process in general takes 48–72 hours, but if there are emergent needs the Oakwood Pharmacy can have transfers completed the same day.
Do residents need to get a new prescription if they switch pharmacies?
No. In most cases, the Oakwood Pharmacy will be able to transfer any existing prescriptions from your current pharmacy and begin filling those medications by the time you need them. If a new prescription were required for any reason, the Oakwood Pharmacy will contact the health care provider who authorized the prescription to request a new prescription.
What do you think is most exciting about the new pharmacy?
The ability to “meet” new and “old” customers! The pharmacy team is excited to see residents and staff in person and become a fixture of the Prairie Ridge community .
