Veterans Health Administration National Drug File

Overview

The Veterans Health Administration National Drug File (VANDF), formerly known as NDF-RT (National Drug File - Reference Terminology), is a comprehensive drug terminology maintained by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. It provides detailed information about clinical drugs used within the VA healthcare system and is distributed nationally through the UMLS Metathesaurus and RxNorm.

Key Features

• Comprehensive Coverage: ~27,921 clinical drug concepts
• Ingredient Classification: ~8,058 ingredient concepts
• Drug Classes: 578 organized drug class concepts
• VA-Specific Content: Includes VA formulary information
• Monthly Updates: Regular updates to maintain currency
• UMLS Integration: Available through UMLS Metathesaurus
• RxNorm Integration: Mapped to and distributed with RxNorm

Content Coverage

Drug Concepts

• Clinical drugs and drug products
• Active pharmaceutical ingredients
• Drug combinations
• Branded and generic drugs
• Dose forms and strengths

Classification Systems

• VA drug class hierarchy
• Therapeutic drug classes
• Pharmacologic classes
• Chemical classes

Relationships

• Ingredient-to-drug relationships
• Drug-to-class relationships
• Hierarchical drug class relationships
• Cross-references to other terminologies

Integration with Other Resources

UMLS Metathesaurus

• VANDF is a source vocabulary in UMLS
• Concepts mapped to other UMLS sources
• Available in all UMLS releases
• Source abbreviation: VANDF

RxNorm

• VANDF concepts mapped to RxNorm
• Provides VA-specific drug naming
• Enhances RxNorm coverage
• Supports interoperability

Applications

• Clinical Documentation: Standardized drug naming in VA EHRs
• Drug Ordering: Supporting computerized provider order entry
• Pharmacy Systems: Drug inventory and dispensing
• Decision Support: Enabling drug interaction checking
• Research: Pharmacoepidemiology and drug utilization studies
• Data Exchange: Facilitating health information exchange

Historical Context

VANDF evolved from the earlier National Drug File - Reference Terminology (NDF-RT), which was an extension of the VA’s National Drug File. While NDF-RT emphasized formal drug classification and description logic, VANDF focuses more on practical clinical drug terminology while maintaining connections to classification systems.

Access & Licensing

Access Methods

• UMLS Metathesaurus: Free with UMLS license
• RxNorm: Free, no license required
• Monthly release cycles
• Bulk downloads available

Licensing

• Freely available through UMLS (requires UMLS license agreement)
• Freely available through RxNorm (no license required)
• U.S. government work, not subject to copyright

Maintenance & Updates

• Maintained by the Veterans Health Administration
• Updated monthly through UMLS and RxNorm releases
• Reflects current VA formulary and drug usage
• Coordinated with RxNorm updates

Information Resource ID

This resource has the Information Resource identifier: infores:ndfrt