SFR Medical was born out of frustration

•    DR JOHANN GRUNDLINGH
•    DECEMBER 6, 2019

As a medical doctor who founded this company, I can recall countless occasions, standing in the Emergency Department of the Royal London Hospital, looking at the lifeless body of a young victim lying on the trolley in front of me.

Another casualty of senseless violence.

One of the reasons why the justice system fails is because evidence is slow to reach the courts. This is accepted as normal and has been for as long as I have been an emergency room physician, likely even longer. This inefficiency leads to court cases often taking years to conclude.

Justice is a slow process. It is difficult to accelerate. There are so many cogs in the wheel, but the wheel does eventually turn. However, does the speed at which the wheel of justice turns affect the eventual outcome of a criminal case? We firmly believe that it does. The passage of time erodes at the chance of justice. Eyewitnesses start doubting their memories, witnesses disappear, facts become distorted, and opinions can change. Justice is a fickle machine, but more sensitive to the ravages of time than a plant left without water. Eventually it will die.

Medical evidence forms a crucial part of the evidence process for victims of violent crimes as it is often required to make a charging or remand decision about suspects. When a victim has been assaulted, medical evidence is integral to the subsequent criminal proceedings, evidence which currently takes 2 – 3 months to procure.

Our vision is to accelerate the timeline by which medical evidence is gathered and shared with the police so that justice can be served in a timely manner.

This is what we aim to do.