What is the Lab R Group?+
The Lab R Group (also known as Grupo Lab R, GrupoLabR, or LabR Group) is a non-profit volunteer collective founded in 2021, made up of clinical laboratory scientists and healthcare professionals who apply the R programming language to quality management in diagnostic medicine. The group is affiliated with the Quality Committee of the Brazilian Society of Clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (SBPC/ML).
What does the Lab R Group do with R in the clinical laboratory?+
The Lab R Group develops open-source R tools for reference intervals, statistical quality control (Westgard rules, sigma metrics, OPSpecs charts), method validation following CLSI EP protocols, measurement uncertainty calculations, machine-learning applications in diagnostics, and interactive Shiny dashboards.
Are the Lab R Group tools free?+
Yes. All tools developed by the Lab R Group are 100% free and open source. The source code is published on GitHub, and any clinical laboratory — regardless of size — is welcome to use, adapt, and contribute to it.
What is LabRI Packed?+
LabRI Packed is a Shiny application developed by the Lab R Group to compute reference intervals in clinical laboratories using robust statistical methods (Horn, refineR, Tukey), automated age- and sex-partitioning tests (Harris–Boyd, Lahti), and full compliance with the CLSI EP28-A3c and IFCC C28-A3 guidelines.
What is LabRI Chatbot?+
LabRI Chatbot is an AI assistant created by the Lab R Group that answers questions about reference intervals, statistical methods, and laboratory quality. All responses are grounded in peer-reviewed scientific literature and the IFCC and CLSI guidelines.
Why use the R programming language in a clinical laboratory?+
R is free, open source, and widely adopted in biostatistics, with specialized packages for laboratory analysis (such as refineR for reference intervals). R enables reproducible analyses, automated reports, and web apps through Shiny — aligning with ISO 15189 and traceability requirements in diagnostic medicine.
How can I contact the Lab R Group?+
You can reach the Lab R Group through the contact page on grupolabr.com, the GitHub repository, or our official YouTube channel. Collaborations with clinical laboratory professionals, biostatisticians, and R developers are very welcome.
What other names is the Lab R Group known by?+
The Lab R Group is also known as Grupo Lab R, GrupoLabR, LabR Group, Grupo LabR, Grupo Lab-R, and Lab-R Group. All of these variations refer to the same non-profit volunteer collective affiliated with SBPC/ML.