Pearl Medical ceases to trade

Pearl Medical, which provided a BlackBerry mobile device to more than 2,000 GPs, has ceased to trade.

The company was acquired by market research company Opinion Health earlier this year, but has announced on its website that it ceased to trade with effect from 11 November.

A statement adds: “The business has unfortunately not been able to raise the short-term financing required to continue operations from the constrained capital markets.”

Users are advised that their BlackBerry voice and data services are likely to be suspended shortly and that airtime providers will contact GPs directly about continuation of the service.

Pearl Medical was launched in January 2006. GPs were offered a BlackBerry for £5 a month in return for completing market research questionnaires. The company’s aim was to recruit 10,000 doctors.

However, when the company was acquired by Opinion Health, more than 400 GPs were told their contract would be cancelled or that they would be offered different terms. Opinion Health said it had plans to extend the Pearl Medical service to secondary care clinicians, nurses and pharmacists.

Opinion Health told EHI Primary Care that it had no comment to make about Pearl Medical ceasing to trade.