Dubai Police has developed a digital platform that reduces the time needed to process forensic toxicology results from around 60 minutes to less than one minute.

The system was developed by four Emirati experts from Dubai Police’s General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology to automate calculations and support the initial interpretation of forensic toxicology results.

The platform brings laboratory data, calculations, scientific references and preliminary comparisons together in one system, reducing manual work and improving consistency and efficiency.

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The team was led by Lieutenant Colonel Dr Rashid Humaid Al Rumaithi, alongside Captain Engineer Mohammad Abdul Qader Al Shamsi and forensic toxicology experts Marwa Aqeel Al Janahi and Fatima Ali Al Suwaidi.

Al Rumaithi, the project director, said the platform was designed to address technical and operational challenges in traditional forensic toxicology procedures, which involved separate manual steps for transferring data, performing calculations, verifying results and comparing them with scientific references.

The system brings these processes together into one digital workflow, allowing laboratory data to be read, calculations completed and results compared with scientific references in less than a minute.

However, specialists remain responsible for reviewing and verifying the results and making the final technical decision, he said.

Al Shamsi said the platform allows experts to spend less time on manual calculations and data preparation and more time on scientific analysis, interpretation and approving final technical opinions.

He described the system as a smart assistant that supports specialists rather than replacing them.

Forensic expert Fatima Al Suwaidi said the platform had reduced the number of data processing steps from 10 to two, while consolidating six separate calculation procedures into one automated calculation.

The time needed to prepare outputs has also fallen from an average of 30 minutes to one minute, she said.

Forensic toxicology expert Marwa Al Janahi said the platform reduces manual intervention and standardises procedures, allowing specialists to focus on complex scientific analysis rather than repetitive tasks.

Dubai Police plans to further develop the system by integrating it more closely with laboratory instruments to reduce manual data entry.

Future phases will also include updating scientific databases and reference resources, developing performance indicators and knowledge dashboards, and exploring the use of artificial intelligence and smart assistants to help specialists retrieve scientific information more quickly.

The developments are intended to expand the platform’s capabilities and potential applications in forensic operations and other specialised fields.

Source: Khaleej Times