WHODrug contains information on over 2.6 million medicinal products and linking this data using semantic web technologies could enable more powerful uses of the data. Publishing WHODrug as linked data using URIs and RDF could allow linking to other data sources, sharing information more easily, and running queries over the graph of linked data. Delivering the data and schema as linked open data through resolvable URIs and SPARQL endpoints is an approach worth further exploration to maximize the potential of the WHODrug dataset.

1. WHODrug as Linked Data - an
idea worth further exploration?
Magnus Wallberg
magnus.wallberg@who-umc.org
@cmwallberg

4. Uppsala Monitoring Centre
Inspire. Engage. Transform.
Uppsala Monitoring Centre (UMC) advances the science of
pharmacovigilance and inspires patient safety initiatives all over the
world.
As an independent, non-profit foundation, we engage stakeholders who
share our vision and collaborate to build a global patient safety culture.
As a leader in the research and development of new scientific methods,
we explore the benefits and risks of medicines to help minimise harm to
patients, and offer products and services used by health authorities and
life-science companies worldwide.
For almost 40 years, we have provided scientific leadership and
operational support to the WHO Programme for International Drug
Monitoring.

6. WHODrug statistics
• 2 649 082 different medicinal products,
trade names with for example form and
strength information added
• 369 789 unique names
• 14 625 different ingredients mentioned
in these products
• Entries from 141 countries
• Data lock point; 2016-09-26

7. Delivery format - up to now

9. Why Linked Data
Product Caltab
Calcium
Colecalciferol
name
A12AX

10. Calcium
Colecalciferol
A12AX
Why Linked Data
Product “Caltab”
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/substance/4565
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/substance/470
label
http://data.whocc.no
/ATC#A12AX

11. Product
Why Linked Data
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/product/3632879
“Caltab”
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/substance/4565
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug/su
bstance/470
label
http://data.whocc.no
/ATC#A12AX
“Colecalciferol”
label
“Calcium”
label
Calcium,
combinations with
vitamin D and/or
other drugs
label

12. Why Linked Data - Exploring a substance
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug/su
bstance/470
“Colecalciferol”
label
“Vitamin d3”
http://bio2rdf.org/drugbank
:DB00169
sameAs
“Colecalciferolum”
“胆骨化醇”
synonym
synonym
synonym

13. Key benefit of using a URI as identifier
Caltab
Calcium Carbonate
http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/product/2359181
Caltab
Calcium, Colecalciferol
http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/product/3750822

14. Usage of the URIs
Linking Databases
Linking Ontologies
Sharing medicinal product information

15. The patient took Caltab as a
concomitant medication
during the trial…
The patient took Caltab as a
concomitant medication
during the trial…
General identification of medicinal
products

16. Resolving the URI (in a web-browser)

17. Resolving the URI from a system
(Accept: application/xml or json)

18. WHODrug as linked data
WHO
Drug

19. “Caltab”
http://data.whocc.no
/ATC#A12AX
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug/su
bstance/470
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/substance/4565
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/product/3632879
From conceptual model to Linked Data
label
“Colecalciferol”
label
“Calcium”
label
Calcium,
combinations with
vitamin D and/or
other drugs
label

20. Product
From conceptual model to Linked Data
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/product/3632879
“Caltab”
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug
/substance/4565
http://data.who-
umc.org/whodrug/su
bstance/470
rdfs:label
http://data.whocc.no
/ATC#A12AX
“Colecalciferol”
rdfs:label
“Calcium”
rdfs:label
Calcium,
combinations with
vitamin D and/or
other drugs
rdfs:label
@prefix rdf: <http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#> .
@prefix rdfs: <http://www.w3.org/2000/01/rdf-schema#> .
@prefix skos: <http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#> .
@prefix wds: <http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/schema#> .
wds:Product
rdf:type
skos:Concept rdf:type
wds:Substance
rdf:type

21. The conceptual model as a linked data
schema (RDF)

22. SPARQL Query

23. Describe the product
http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/product/3632879

24. Describe the product composition
http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/composition/13500101

25. Describe the substance
http://data.who-umc.org/whodrug/substance/470

26. Moving forward
Do nothing
Deliver a schema – leave implementation
to users (based on old text files)
Deliver schema and data as RDF-files
(version controlled)
Deliver a Linked Data API with resolvable
URIs (HTML, json-LD, RDF)
SPARQL-endpoint

27. Magnus Wallberg
magnus.wallberg@who-umc.org
@cmwallberg
WHODrug as Linked Data - an idea
worth further exploration?