MedSearch | Medicine information search app

General questions and answers

What is Consumer Medicines Information (CMI)?

A CMI is a document written for consumers that contains information on the safe and effective use of a medicine.

CMI documents are written by the pharmaceutical company responsible for the medicine.

What is Product Information (PI)?

A PI document provides health professionals with a summary of the scientific information relevant to the safe and effective use of a prescription medicine, some non-prescription medicines and some biologicals.

The information in a PI document has been written by the pharmaceutical company responsible for the medicine and has been approved by the TGA.

Why can't I open a CMI or PI?

You may need to download an application to read PDF documents on Android devices. There are many free and reliable PDF reader programs you can download from Google Play.

Where are my downloaded documents?

Android devices: The CMI or PI will be saved to your downloaded documents. The file will be named with the document type (CMI or PI) and the AUST R number of the medicine. There will usually be a download notificaiton in your notification bar at the top of your screen.

iPhone: PDFs will be opened in MedSearch™ and can be exported to other apps if desired.

Who is responsible for maintaining PI and CMIs?

The pharmaceutical company responsible for the medicine (known as the medicine's "sponsor") provides the content of the PI document and the CMI document. The PI is approved by the TGA. It is the responsibility of the sponsor to make the documents available to the TGA.

How can I report a problem with the content of a CMI or PI document?

You can report a problem with the content of a CMI or PI document by contacting the pharmaceutical company responsible for the medicine.

 Favourites and sharing

Favourites and sharing

What does the star icon mean?

The star icon is the "favourite" button - it allows you to easily build a list of CMIs and PIs that you might want to quickly view again. You can access your favourites through the main menu.

How do I add a medicine to my favourites?

Tap the grey star on the side of any search result to add it to your favourites. The star will change from grey to orange when a medicine has been added to your favourites.

How can I remove a medicine from my favourites?

To remove a result from your favourites, tap the orange star icon. The star will change from orange to grey. The medicine won't disappear from your favourites immediately, but will disappear the next time the favourites list is loaded, allowing you to re-add it quickly if you accidentally remove it.

What determines the order of my favourites?

The medicine you have most recently added to your favourites will appear at the top of the list.

How does the "share" function work?

The share function allows you to share a link to a PI or CMI document via other applications on your device, such as email. This link will allow people to access that document through the TGA website after they accept the licence agreement.

Searching and results

Searching and results 

Why can't I find my medicine?

MedSearch™ only includes prescription medicines, some non-prescription medicines and some biologicals which are entered on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) and which have a CMI or PI document available on the TGA website.

If your medicine does not have a CMI or PI document you will not be able to find it in MedSearch™, but you can search for other information about the product using the ARTG search available on the TGA website.

How can I find out what medicine to take?

These decisions should be made in consultation with a health professional. MedSearch™ only provides CMIs and PIs. It cannot help you find out how to treat medical conditions or which medicine to take.

How can I report an adverse reaction to a medicine?

If you believe you are having an adverse reaction to a medicine you should seek advice from a health professional.

You can also report the adverse reaction to the TGA. Find out how to report an adverse reaction on the TGA website.

Why doesn't my medicine have a CMI or PI document?

Information on the availability of CMI documents and the availability of PI documents can be found on the TGA website.

Why is my search limited to 500 results?

MedSearch™ is designed to allow you to search for a specific medicine. If a search returns many results there is likely to be a more effective search you can use. The app stops loading results to avoid using up unnecessary data and loading time before you can run a new search.

What are operators and why can't I use them in my search?

In a search, the words "And", "Or", and "Not" are known as "operators" - these words have a meaning to search engines that let the service run more complicated queries such as "search for this OR that". These are not currently supported by MedSearch™ and searches containing them will not be run.

How can I search by AUST R?

If you type an AUST R number into the simple search (available on the home screen) MedSearch™ will recognise it as an AUST R number and return the matching medicine.

Why can't I search by AUST L?

MedSearch™ only returns registered medicines with PI or CMI documents. AUST L medicines are listed medicines and the TGA does not hold CMI or PI documents relating to them.

What determines the order of search results?

Search results which match the search term are ordered by descending AUST R number.

What do the two icons in the top right corner of my results mean?

These icons are the CMI and PI icons and they indicate whether a result has a CMI or PI document attached. If a result does not have a CMI or PI attached, that icon won't be visible on the result. MedSearch™ will not return a result if neither a CMI or PI.

Can I search for medical devices?

Medical devices do not have CMI or PI documents, and will never appear in MedSearch™. However you can search for information about medical devices using the ARTG search facility provided on the TGA website.

Data collection and privacy

What data is collected from my use of application?

MedSearch™ does not collect any data on its users. Your favourite records are stored on your device.

Read the TGA's privacy statement

How can I report a technical problem with searching and accessing documents in MedSearch™?

You can report technical problems with MedSearch™ by contacting the TGA on 1800 020 653 or by emailing info@tga.gov.au.