The company recorded an operating loss of $787,000 (€579,000) in Q1, compared to $2.23m in the same period of 2008. However, this quarter included $634,000 in severance payments primarily related to the departure of two executive officers.
Without these payments the company would be approaching profitability and this gave Laurence Birch, chairman of the board and interim-CEO, reason to be optimistic.
Birch said: "We are very pleased with our first quarter results, which we believe reflect our continuing efforts to optimise our operating structure.
“While our current severance commitments are significant, we believe building a strong, experienced management team is imperative to positioning the Company for success, and in turn, driving long-term shareholder value."
Birch’s belief in Datatrak’s efforts to “optimise [its] operating structure” are underpinned by the company’s results that show expenditure has been cut significantly over the past 12 months.
Including severance pay Datatrak’s outgoings totaled $2.4m in Q1 2009, down from $3.38m in the first quarter of last year.
Partnership with Inclinix
Datatrak also recently entered into a strategic alliance with Inclinix, a US-based contract research organisation (CRO), to provide enrollment services for Phase I to IV clinical trials.
The companies claim they are providing: “the first ever enrolment solution that delivers seamless integration and execution of services, reducing a sponsor’s need to outsource to multiple vendors for successful trial completion.”