Is it C3PO? R2D2?

No. It’s our own hospital robots, creating timely and efficient supply delivery.

Name Our Robots!

You, too, can name our R2D2s. We’re enlisting your help to name our two robots. Visit www.lvh.org/robotscontest to enter your suggestions.

Imagine this: You’re a nurse on 7A, caring for a patient, when you hear a charming, soothing voice behind you. “Your delivery has arrived,” the voice says. You turn around and are greeted not by a person, but by a 3-foot-tall, 2-foot-wide robot, holding the linens you requested. Smiling, you remove the supplies, then press a green button that tells the robot it’s OK to proceed to the next unit.

Sound like a scene from “Star Wars”? It’s not. It’s actually happening at LVH–Cedar Crest thanks to Chris Holmes
and his team at supply distribution services. Two robots are currently in their first month of work, ensuring timely, efficient delivery of supplies to nursing units.

Holmes first saw the robots two years ago and immediately identified a need for them here. “Nearly 70 percent of requested supplies need to be carried onto a unit,” he explains. “Our employees used to have to do it. But thanks to the robots, those employees now can concentrate on other needs, like replenishing our warehouse stock and making bulk deliveries.” The robots also mean we won’t have to hire new people to bring supplies to the new Kasych Family Pavilion when completed.

The robots are working 24/7. While one makes unit deliveries, the other is on SDS getting recharged and stocked with supplies for the next round.

They’re smart, sophisticated and sassy. Each robot is programmed to navigate the hospital and steer around people, beds and doors. They send automated signals to elevators letting them know they’re approaching, and they’re programmed to electronically tell the elevator what floor to access. Their speed is even controlled—faster in the hallways and slower on patient units. And, of course, they talk.

So, when you hear that voice, don’t be surprised to see a robot standing beside you. “In the future, the robots might do more, like talk in different languages,” Holmes says. “But right now, this amazing technology allows us to take a giant step toward improving efficiency.”

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