But the future is now at Elmhurst Hospital: meet Moxi the robot.
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"With the events of the last couple years our nursing staff has been extremely burdened and jobs have been difficult," said Hiral Patel, Edward-Elmhurst Health.
Moxi can do many of the errands that previously took nurses and nurse assistants valuable time and steps. Patient care tech Tom Angelos would often get in 25,000 steps a day.
"I've literally walked a half marathon. It's gonna help immensely to help us provide patient care," he said.
When Moxi heads to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription, she can unlock the doors with her code with the wave of her hand. She can also take the elevator. When she arrives at the pharmacy the pharmacist can check her instructions on the screen on her chest, then scan open a secure compartment to deposit the medicine.
With Moxi on the job nurses can concentrate on what they do best.
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"That's what we want nurses to focus on, taking care of patients," Patel said.
Moxi comes preprogrammed with a diagram of the hospital to help her get around. She does not interact with patients in their rooms, but they run into her in the halls.
"It's fun. She's got a little personality," said registered nurse Diane Betts.
Right now Moxi and her twin sister, also named Moxi and who are both at Elmhurst Hospital, are the only robots live in the Midwest. Other hospitals are in development with similar models and it's likely we'll see more Moxis in hospitals very soon.