The rise of R and what role the AIMS SIG plays in it

Do you think, R can’t be used for regulatory submissions?
Are you forced to use SAS but would like to use R instead?
Would you like to understand how you can make R submission proof?

Then this interview with Lyn Tailor and Craig McIlloney helps you. Both work on the PSI special interest group Application and Implementation of Methodologies in Statistics (AIMS) on this topics.

Furthermore, we cover the following topics:

• Use of SAS vs R in the industry for exploratory vs submission work
• Where is the rise of R coming from?
• Where are the key differences between R and SAS?
• Why people aren’t using R more
• R foundations documentation for the core packages
• Challenges with use of the other packages for submission work
• AIMS SIG plan for a Validation framework and platform for sharing evidence
• Work to date on the validation framework / set up of R Validation Hub Project / partners
• Who will benefit from this outcome?
• How you can contribute

References:

• AIMS slide set based on PSI strategy day
• AIMS SIG information: https://www.psiweb.org/sigs-special-interest-groups/aims
• The R validation project documentation will be stored on: https://github.com/pharmaR
• Discussion forum: https://rvalidationhub.slack.com

About Craig McIlloney

Craig McIlloney holds an MSc in Applied Statistics from Napier University and a BSc (Hons) in Statistics from the University of Glasgow.  Working in the pharmaceutical industry for more than 20 years Craig joined PPD in July 2002 where he has had various statistical and leadership roles and is currently Vice President of Global Biostatistics and Programming.  Prior to PPD Craig spent 5 years working as a statistician and programmer with another CRO and 3 years working within the finance industry. From 2013 to 2017 Craig served on the PSI Board of Directors where he oversaw the move to a new website and helped establish the Application and Implementation of Methodologies in Statistics (AIMS) SIG.  Craig is particularly focused on supporting the industry drive to expedite decision making through quicker access to data and results which aligns with the focus of the AIMS SIG to provide access to a wider set of tools for statisticians and programmers.  Craig is also a Chartered Statistician with The Royal Statistical Society.

About Lyn Taylor

Lyn Taylor received her B.Sc. in Applied Statistics from Sheffield Hallam University, her M.Sc. in Medical Statistics from Leicester University and her Ph.D. in Statistical Modelling of Markers of Severity in Rheumatoid Arthritis from Sheffield University. Lyn has worked in medical research for over 17 years, starting out at SmithKline Beecham in the pre-clinical statistics group before moving into the world of CRO’s.  After 11 years as a statistician at PAREXEL, Lyn worked at PRA Health Sciences for 3 years and is now Sheffield Office Manager for Phastar.   Lyn is the chairperson for the Sheffield local group RSS, co-ordinates a Statistical Activity Network in Sheffield (SANS) and was on PSI CALC before joining the PSI Statistical computing committee which is now the PSI AIMS SIG.  Lyn’s current statistical interests including multivariate modelling, estimands and the use of R in our industry.