Roper St. Francis Healthcare launches nation’s first full-service coffee shop in a healthcare facili

Roper St. Francis Healthcare celebrated today the grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony of Palmetto Market, a futuristic cafe located inside Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, and the first full-service coffee shop with barista service in a U.S. healthcare facility to use Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology.

This innovative, AI-powered store blends artificial intelligence with human hospitality to redefine how patients, visitors and healthcare workers access food, beverages and everyday essentials; no lines or checkout counters required.

Open 24/7, Palmetto Market offers full-service Starbucks beverages served by a barista from 6  a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, as well as fresh, grab-and-go food options, snacks, beverages, Roper St. Francis Healthcare-branded merchandise, flowers, gifts and more—available any time of day or night. Whether guests need a quick boost, a last-minute gift or a late-night snack, the Palmetto Market is fully stocked and always open.

“We’re proud to lead the way as the first in the country to introduce this technology for a full-service coffee shop and gift store experience,” Fletcher said. “Enhancing the experience for our patients, visitors and teammates is always top of mind, and this decision embodies that commitment.”

Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital is a 190-bed hospital located in the heart of West Ashley that boasts a distinguished Magnet-designated nursing program, 24-hour, full-service emergency department and comprehensive women’s and children’s services. This new store responds to the increasing demand for fast, convenient and nutritious food options available to all shifts and all visitors – day or night.

“The opening of the Palmetto Market is a great example of how we’re achieving our 2030 Strategic Plan goals,” said Matt Desmond, vice president and regional president of Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital. “We’re investing in modern technology that enhances the teammate and patient experience, especially for those working night shifts or visiting outside traditional hours.”

Amazon’s technology allows for a convenient, no-lines checkout experience. Anyone can enter the store with the swipe of a debit or credit card at the entry gate. Teammates can even use their Roper St. Francis Healthcare badge for entry. The Just Walk Out technology tracks items as they’re picked up from or returned to shelves and automatically charges the customer’s selected payment method upon exit – which eliminates the need to wait in line.

Roper St. Francis Healthcare collaborated with its food service provider, Morrison Healthcare, to ensure the store is well-stocked with locally prepared food options.

“We are always looking at how we can further enhance the hospital dining experience so that patients, their families, and hospital staff and clinical caregivers can easily access high-quality and delicious food when they need it,” said Avi Pinto, CEO of Morrison Healthcare. “Helping to bring the first full-service coffeeshop, powered by Amazon Just Walk Out technology, to Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital is an exciting step in evolving the healthcare experience. We’re proud to have in them a partner who invests in their teammates and values modernizing technology.”

Just Walk Out technology is made possible by artificial intelligence like computer vision and deep learning techniques to accurately determine who took what in any retail environment. Amazon built synthetic datasets to mimic millions of realistic shopping scenarios—including variations in store format, lighting conditions and even crowds of shoppers—to finetune the system’s performance in any setting.