BayCare Health System has launched a pilot program at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater to test robotics for patient transport and hospital operations.
The initiative, announced April 21, is a partnership with Florida-based startup Rovex and represents the company’s first live hospital deployment in the Tampa Bay region. The phased program will evaluate how robotic systems move through the hospital and integrate with existing workflows, with early testing focused on navigation rather than patient movement.
The effort targets a core hospital function. Moving patients between departments affects imaging schedules, admissions and discharge, and delays can slow care across the system while adding strain for staff.
Later phases of the program are expected to explore robotic stretcher transport, depending on performance and safety outcomes. For now, BayCare is studying how the technology fits within a working hospital environment and where it can reduce delays.
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Rovex, founded in 2024 by emergency physician David Crabb, is developing autonomous systems to improve patient movement inside hospitals. The company focuses on transport delays that affect patient flow and limit how efficiently hospitals use existing capacity.
“Hospital logistics has downstream effects on staff workload, patient flow and the patient experience,” Crabb said.
BayCare said the system is designed to support staff rather than replace them, reducing physical strain and allowing care teams to spend more time with patients.
“Delivering better patient care requires innovation across every aspect of hospital operations,” said Craig Anderson, BayCare’s vice president of innovation.
The pilot will also serve as a test case for broader adoption across BayCare’s network, which includes 16 hospitals across West Central Florida. System leaders said the goal is to evaluate whether robotics can scale across multiple facilities while maintaining safe and efficient operations.
“What’s most compelling about this pilot is the chance to closely evaluate and learn,” said Dr. Chris Bucciarelli, BayCare’s chief medical officer for ambulatory services. “By studying how robotics may support patient transport in a real hospital environment, we can better understand how to design care systems that support both patients and staff.”
Rovex established a presence at spARK Labs by ARK Invest in St. Petersburg earlier this year to support deployments in the region, positioning Tampa Bay as its initial market. The Morton Plant pilot will determine whether the company’s technology can move from development into routine hospital use.
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