Martin Burns of Bruin Biometrics: Leading the way on diagnostic innovation

Back in 2012, Martin Burns spotted a UCLA-born device prototype in a magazine, a novel technology designed to detect pressure injuries, commonly known as bedsores, before they happen. Thirteen years later, the former strategy consultant and now Chief Executive Officer of Bruin Biometrics has spent the past decade turning the company and that technology into a global player in wound-care technology.

In an interview with Medical Device and Technology, Burns traces how that moment led to Bruin’s signature product: the Provizio SEM Scanner, a handheld device that uses capacitance to quantify sub-epidermal moisture and flag the risk of bedsores. The device can do this days before skin breaks down, regardless of a patient’s skin tone.

Burns explains the “formulas” strategy that guided the scanner from university lab bench to CE mark, FDA de novo clearance and more than 100 peer-reviewed studies, all aimed at one goal: eliminating preventable bedsores across every care setting.

He details how early detection reshapes nursing workflows, trims as much as seven hours of staff time per ward each day and delivers the rare combination of better outcomes at lower cost. The conversation also tackles the tougher side of commercialization, securing breakthrough-device reimbursement pathways and making the scanner “free at the point of care.”

Looking ahead, Burns discusses PIPPA, an AI-powered bedside assistant designed to automate documentation and guide interventions and shares why he believes diagnostic innovation still lags on investors’ radar. The discussion closes with a candid assessment of med-tech headwinds — from tariff volatility to capital shortages — and why Burns remains bullish on artificial intelligence to propel the next wave of patient-safety advances.

About Martin Burns

Appointed CEO of Bruin Biometrics in 2012, Martin Burns designed and led the successful journey of Bruin Biometrics’ SEM Scanner through the company’s concept-to-commercialization “formulas strategy.” Significant milestones include FDA de novo Marketing Authorization (2018), CE Marking (2013) and in 2020 he negotiated a global distribution arrangement and investment with Arjo. Martins’ background is strategy and operations management consulting to large med tech companies. He earned his MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, where he is a guest speaker on healthcare strategy and medical device marketing courses, and his BA from the London School of Economics.