Join 1500+ Australians in the World’s Largest At-home Natural Medicine Study
Quality of Life Evaluation Study.
The Quality-of-Life Evaluation Study (QUEST) conducted by Curtin University, is investigating the quality of life and health economic impact of natural medicine on patients with a chronic health condition.
If you are aged 18 years or above and suffer from a chronic condition, you may be eligible to join over 1,500 other Australian’s who are currently contributing to the world’s largest at-home natural medicine study.
How The At-Home Study Works.
The QUEST study is designed to evaluate both quality of life improvements and potential economic benefits. It starts by documenting the baseline symptoms associated with a participants' diagnosed condition/s before taking natural medicine. Over time, the study will track and compare changes in symptom severity after therapy commences.
-
Check the eligibility criteria and then complete your registration details online. Our team will then be in touch to assist you choose an experienced doctor that suits your needs and with booking a consultation.
-
In your consultation, the doctor will discuss your condition and assess your eligibility for natural medicine and study enrolment. If you’re deemed suitable, you’ll be enrolled in the study and your prescription will then be sent to the study’s pharmacy on your behalf.
-
When the study pharmacy receives your prescription from the doctor they will contact you to request payment for your subsidised medication. After payment, medication will be delivered to your home at no extra charge.
-
Before starting the medication, you will need to complete the first online survey to assess your baseline symptoms. After that you will also be asked to complete additional surveys at the following times: one month after starting natural medicine therapy, every three months during the first year and then every six months thereafter, if you continue with the study for more than a year.
-
Being in this study is completely voluntary and you can withdraw at any time. If you decide to take part in the study and then change your mind later, you can withdraw by contacting the doctor who prescribed you natural medicine.
Please note that if you do withdraw from the study, you may no longer receive the study participant discount on the cost of your natural medicine prescription.
Who Can Participate?
The Quality-of-Life Evaluation Study (QUEST) is seeking patients who are aged 18 years or above and living in Australia, have a chronic health condition, have tried other medications without success and have not taken any type of similar prescribed natural medicine for the past four weeks.
Eligibility for this study and natural medicine treatment will ultimately be determined by a consulting doctor based on your individual clinical circumstances.
-
Only adults over 18 years of age and living in Australia can take part in this study.
-
A ‘chronic condition’ is a long- lasting condition with persistent effects that have been diagnosed by a healthcare professional. These chronic conditions tend to be common, can pose significant health problems, and, in many instances, action can be taken to prevent their occurrence or treat their symptoms.
-
In Australia individuals can be eligible for natural medicine if they have tried other prescription medications or standard treatments that have been unsuccessful or had unwanted side effects.
-
In addition to meeting the eligibility criteria for natural medicine—requiring that a patient has a chronic medical condition and has unsuccessfully tried other prescription medications or standard treatments—a doctor must also determine if natural medicine is appropriate for you based on your individual circumstances and medical history. Certain contraindications, such as pregnancy or breastfeeding, and precautions like severe renal or liver disease, or a history of psychosis and schizophrenia, may lead a doctor to advise against this treatment. The doctor will also need to assess potential drug interactions with your current medications (if applicable) and consider any concerns related to workplace drug testing.
-
This study will evaluate patients' baseline symptoms from their diagnosed condition prior to starting natural medicine and then track changes in symptom severity over time after beginning natural medicine therapy. Therefore, it is crucial that patients have not been using similar prescribed natural medicine for at least four weeks before enrolling in the study.
-
Additional to the above points, you CANNOT take part in the study if you:
are unable to speak, read and/or write in English
are unconscious, confused or have difficulty with attention, memory, or problem solving
are denied access to prescribed natural medicine under the relevant Special Access Scheme in your country
are unable to provide informed consent
are currently receiving prescribed natural medicine treatment for more than 2 days have received prescription natural medicine within the last 4 weeks (excluding previous 2 days)
Frequently Asked Questions.
-
Participants in this study will be required to purchase their own medications. An Australian manufacturer of natural medicine will be supplying their medications to ensure product standardisation. Each patient taking part in this study will be charged a standardised cost of natural medicine products. These products range in price depending on the amount of active ingredient and start from $105. These prices are subsidised and include delivery.
Standard doctor consult fees also apply, and it is recommended patients discuss these fees with their doctor of choice.
It is not possible to advise patients exactly how much product they will require daily and the total costs of their medication. This is because dosing of natural medicine remains highly individualised and relies on each patient working with their doctor to find the dose that works best for them where the benefits are maximised and any unwanted side effects are minimised.
As these natural medicines are still an unregistered product in Australia, these medications are not covered under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). As a result, patients are required to pay the entire cost of the medicine. There are some health insurers such as HIF that will offer a rebate for prescription medicines, but patients should contact their own insurer to discuss if this is indeed an option.
-
The Australian manufacturer sponsoring the study has arranged a distribution agreement with a partner pharmacy to ensure participating patients can get their natural medicine products safely delivered to their home at no extra cost.
You will be prompted to pay for the product before it is delivered to you. Payment can be made by credit or debit card over the phone with the partner pharmacy, Oxford or Cambridge Compounding.
-
You will need to complete the study surveys at the following intervals:
• upon joining the study (before starting treatment)
• two weeks after first starting natural medicine therapy
• three-monthly for the rest of the year
• at six-month intervals until the end of the study
On each occasion, the questionnaires will take approximately 20-25 minutes to complete.
Please note: You will need internet access to complete the questionnaires via a website on your smartphone, tablet or computer. You will then receive notifications by email to complete follow-up questionnaires.
-
There is no set list of eligible chronic conditions that can be considered for this study. A doctor and the relevant health authorities need to approve its use for the patient considering individual circumstances and if there is evidence or research showing therapeutic benefit from the use of natural medicine in patients with a similar medical condition.
A doctor can prescribe prescribed natural medicine only after established treatments have been trialled and or have been unsuccessful, with the exception of palliative care.
You can contact our team to discuss on:
Phone: 1300 664 369
Email: info@thequestinitiative.com
-
If being able to drive or operate machinery is important to you then you can discuss this with your doctor. Some natural medicines included in the study contain compounds that can affect your ability to drive, while others do not and therefore will not present an issue for driving.
Please note that in most states and territories (excluding Tasmania), it is an offence to drive if some of these specific compounds are detected in your system, regardless of whether or not you feel impaired, and regardless of whether the medicine was prescribed or obtained elsewhere. For this reason, it is recommended that people using natural medicines with ingredients which may affect driving ability, do not drive.
Similar to driving whilst taking other medications, if you feel impaired then you should not drive. Any product that contains these natural medicines can impair attention and concentration, which affects a person’s fitness to drive and operate machinery.
-
Participating in this study is completely voluntary and you do not have to take part if you do not wish to do so. Your decision whether to participate will not affect your current or future relationship with the researchers or anyone else at the Curtin University and will not affect your current or future treatment at the clinic you are having treatment or relationships with your doctor or treating team.
If you decide to take part in the study and then change your mind later, you can withdraw at any time. You can do this by contacting the doctor who prescribed natural medicine. If you withdraw from the study, you can still access the medication but will no longer receive your natural medicine prescription at the participant study cost.
Submitting your completed surveys is an indication of your consent to participate in the study. If you change your mind about having your responses included in the study, you can withdraw them up to the point that the data has been analysed. After that point your data cannot be removed and will be included in the study.
-
Participating in this study is completely voluntary and you do not have to take part if you do not wish to do so. Your decision whether to participate will not affect your current or future relationship with the researchers or anyone else at the Curtin University and will not affect your current or future treatment at the clinic you are having treatment or relationships with your doctor or treating team.
If you decide to take part in the study and then change your mind later, you can withdraw at any time. You can do this by contacting the doctor who prescribed medicinal cannabis. If you withdraw from the study, you can still access the medication but will no longer receive your medicinal cannabis prescription at the participant study cost.
Submitting your completed surveys is an indication of your consent to participate in the study. If you change your mind about having your responses included in the study, you can withdraw them up to the point that the data has been analysed. After that point your data cannot be removed and will be included in the study.
-
Yes. The online surveys that are sent to you can be completed in your own home or anywhere you like.
Most of the QUEST registered doctors are also available for telehealth consultations which can also be complete from your own home. However, if you would prefer a face-to-face consult, please contact our team to arrange where possible.
Study Results 12-Month Summary.
The ongoing Quality-of-Life Evaluation Study by Curtin University is examining the impact of natural medicine on the quality of life and health economics for patients with chronic health conditions. This research builds on the previous QUEST study, which yielded positive results.
Enrol in the Study
Participate in the World’s Largest At-Home Natural Medicine Study and explore how this treatment could enhance your quality of life. With a simple registration process, you'll gain access to subsidised medication and have the flexibility to opt out at any time.