SCCM brought together leading minds across diverse disciplines to explore emerging critical care innovations in pharmaceuticals, medical technology, big data, and AI during the inaugural Critical Care Innovation Incubator.
Critical care innovation and advancement requires collaboration among clinicians, industry leaders, and investors to develop creative solutions to patient care problems. The Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) brought together leading minds across diverse disciplines to explore emerging critical care innovations in pharmaceuticals, medical technology, big data, and AI during the inaugural Critical Care Innovation Incubator held in conjunction with SCCM’s 2025 Critical Care Congress in Orlando, Florida, USA.
The all-day incubator event offered a mix of educational presentations and roundtables on innovation, funding processes, opportunities, research validity, and creating an ideal pitch. Attendees submitted pitches and posters on innovations addressing critical care needs for the chance to pitch their proposals to other attendees and a panel of judges for monetary awards.
Four awards were presented during the 2025 event:
- Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) Pitch Award ($5,000): Redefining Standards for Bleeding Control
- Patient Safety Technology Challenge Poster Award ($2,000): Inflatable Patient Proning and Positioning Device
- SCCM Pitch Award ($10,000): Revolutionizing Cerebral Edema Management - Intracranial Dynamics Monitoring
- SCCM Poster Award ($5,000): The PUMA System and Ultrasound Gastrostomy - Reducing ICU LOS, Hospital Cost, and Complications
“The incubator was essential,” said Sara Lee, MD, who was a member of the team that received the Patient Safety Technology Challenge Poster Award. “I learned so much about medical devices, funding, and the regulatory pathway. It was especially exciting to see the device posters and pitches of the exciting work the clinical community is doing.”
Dr. Lee; clinical advisors Farokh Demehri, MD, and Heung Bae Kim, MD; research fellow Megan Chiu, MD, MPH; engineering consultant Luke Gray; and business consultant Jeff Caputo pitched an inflatable patient proning and positioning device. “Prone positioning requires six to eight healthcare workers and is time consuming and sometimes dangerous for the patient and healthcare workers,” said Dr. Lee. “We made an inflatable patient positioning device that can turn the patient with two to three healthcare workers with an estimated 80% decrease in force.”
During the pitching process, innovators and teams networked, answered questions, and gained valuable insights into their work. “We were asked so many questions,” said Dr. Lee. “Some I was prepared to answer and others not so prepared, which helped me better think about how we could improve the device for the future.”
Award recipients were chosen for their project’s relevance to critical care innovation, potential impact on patient outcomes, novelty, and feasibility. Recipient of the MTEC Pitch Award, Hyunwoo Yuk, PhD, alongside his team of scientists, engineers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs, presented SanaHeal, a bioadhesive technology platform that allows rapid (<10 seconds), robust, and preparation-free repair of actively bleeding and wet tissues and organs, bringing the convenience of duct tape to surgical applications.
“It was wonderful to introduce and discuss our innovations and technologies with clinical experts, and it was inspiring to see other innovations happening in critical care,” said Dr. Yuk. SanaHeal’s bioadhesives are designed to repel contaminants and absorb excess moisture from the surface. The adhesive is in direct contact with tissues, allowing for diverse clinical applications to patient care inside and outside of the operating room.
“When my little brother was severely injured in an accident, he had to stay in the ICU for a long time, with multiple surgeries,” said Dr. Yuk. “Seeing him go through that left a deep mark on me by observing various critical care and surgical care as a patient’s family. As a biomaterial scientist and mechanical engineer, it motivated me to develop better technology to treat injuries than existing solutions available.”
Recipient of the SCCM Pitch Award, Carlos Bremer showcased brain4care’s noninvasive intracranial dynamics monitoring technology—a real-time, point-of-care solution designed to detect and track cerebral edema early, helping prevent secondary brain injuries and reduce ICU stays and readmissions.
“Time is brain,” said Carlos Bremer, brain4care board member. “Unlike the heart, the brain lacked a noninvasive, continuous monitoring tool. We set out to change that.” This innovation addresses a critical gap in neurocritical care by enabling clinicians to act sooner and more precisely.
For cerebral edema management, brain4care enables early, noninvasive detection of intracranial pressure and compliance impairments, guiding timely interventions that prevent secondary injury and bring neuroprotection into routine critical care. Receiving the SCCM Pitch Award at the incubator validated their mission. “The event sharpened our value proposition and reinforced our commitment to transforming brain monitoring,” said Mr. Bremer. “Collaborating with other bold, evidence-based startups gave us fresh insights into clinical validation, reimbursement, and adoption strategies.”
