Managing tasks effectively in Canvas is essential for ensuring that all patient care and administrative duties are executed efficiently. This article will walk you through the complete process of creating, managing, and organizing tasks, ensuring you have all the necessary details at your fingertips.
Tasks in Canvas can be manually created within a patient's chart with the Task command or via Canvas Chat, providing flexibility depending on your workflow.
Tasks within a patient’s chart are often related to specific actions or follow-ups required for that patient.
Here’s how to create them:
Initiate a Task Command: Within a note, type "task" on a blank line and press Enter or click on the Task command option.
Fill Out Task Details:
Task: Enter the details of the task, specifying what needs to be done.
Assign to: Choose who will be responsible for the task. This could be a specific team, individual, or care team role (e.g., Referrals team, John Smith, PCP).
Due Date: Select the date by which the task should be completed to ensure timely action.
Comment: Add any additional notes or instructions relevant to the task. These comments will be visible in the task list and task card within the patient chart.
Label: Apply any relevant labels to categorize the task, aiding in organization and prioritization.
Linked Items: Attach components of the patient’s chart to the task for reference.
Create the Task: After entering all necessary information, click CREATE to finalize and commit the task. Once created, the task is visible on the task list within the patient’s chart as well as the assigned user’s task list.
Patient chart
Assigned user’s task list
The task will remain assigned to the original care team role even if the care team role is later deleted or reassigned. However, if the task is part of an automation and the care team role is deleted, the automation will no longer assign an assignee.
Canvas Chat allows for quick task creation in the middle of a conversation or when interacting with Canvas Bot
Access Canvas Chat: This can be found at the bottom right of your Canvas screen.
Type /task
: This command brings up the task creation prompt.
Enter Task Details using the designated formatting /task [assignee] [what] [when due]
Assignee: Use the "@" sign immediately followed by the name of the person or team to whom the task is assigned.
Task Description: Provide a brief description of the task. If the task relates to a specific patient, use the "#" sign followed by the patient’s name to link the task.
Due Date: If required, add a due date
Create the Task: Press Enter to generate the task. You’ll see a confirmation message "Task created." in the chat dialogue box
Tasks created in Canvas Chat are not required to have an associated patient. Tasks without an associated patient can only be viewed on the task list.
To view and manage tasks within a patient's chart:
Navigate to the desired patient chart and select the Tasks icon from the filter panel. This opens the task cards in a pane to the right of the chart.
Use the task header at the top of the Task Panel to filter tasks by status (open, completed, or closed), label, or due date.
Each task has a card with essential information where you can:
View or change the assignee.
View, assign, or change a team.
View, change, or add a due date.
View or add a comment.
View, add, or remove labels.
Review or link new items.
To complete a task, select the blue Done button. Alternatively, to mark a task as closed without completing it, select the white downward arrow next to the Done button and choose Closed.
Use "Done" when the task has been fully completed, and "Closed" when the task is no longer relevant without any work performed.
The Task List serves as a central hub for managing all your tasks. You can access it through the panel filters at the top right of your screen when you are not in a patient chart. By default, you'll see all tasks assigned to you or to teams of which you're a member.
The following columns are visible and allow you to take action without opening each task:
Task: Displays the task name and any internal comments.
Patient: Shows the patient's name and links to their chart. Clicking the name opens the patient chart in the same tab.
Follow-Up Due: Indicates the task's due date.
Activity: Shows the date and a preview of the most recent comment. Click the comment count to view all comments or add new ones.
Created: Indicates when and by whom the task was created.
Assignee: Lists the individual assigned to the task.
Team: Shows the team assigned to the task.
Linked Items: Provides references and links to associated items. Hover over an item tile for more details or to open it in a new tab.
Labels: Displays labels associated with the task.
Filters help you manage your tasks by narrowing down the list to those most relevant to your current needs.
You can filter tasks based on several criteria:
Assignee: By default, this is set to "Me or my teams." However, you can filter tasks assigned to other staff members, teams, or specific individuals.
Status: Filter tasks by their current status (open, completed, or closed). You can select multiple statuses at once.
Creator: Choose to filter tasks based on who created them.
Label: Filter tasks using labels that have been applied. If searching for a label, note that multi-select requires scrolling and manually checking boxes.
Due Date: Filter tasks by due date, including options for all dates, overdue tasks, tasks due today, or tasks without a due date.
To select labels using the filter, you need to scroll through the list and manually check the boxes. The search field allows you to find specific labels, but you cannot press Enter to select them after typing in the search.
Sorting allows you to prioritize tasks by various criteria:
Navigate to the Column Headers: These include Task, Patient, Follow-up Due, Activity, Created, Assignee, and Team.
Sort Tasks: Click on any column header to sort tasks:
Click once for ascending order.
Click twice for descending order.
Sorting is unavailable for linked items or labels. To streamline your workflow, use filters when working with labels.
Labels help in categorizing and organizing tasks efficiently. You can add existing labels or create new ones as needed.
To label a task:
Locate the Task: Find the task in your Task List.
Add a Label: Click on "No labels" or the +
icon next to an existing label, then search for and select the appropriate label(s).
Review Task & Claim Labels for information on how to create and manage your custom labels.
Linking resources to tasks is a powerful feature that allows you to associate relevant documents, notes, and other tasks directly to a task, providing all necessary information in one place.
When creating or updating a task, use the "Linked Items" field to attach resources:
Search and Select Resources: Up to five resources can be linked to a task. The resources you can link are specific to the patient’s chart.
View Resource Details: Hover over the linked resource to see additional details, ensuring the correct item is attached.
Navigate to Linked Resources: Click on the heading of the linked resource to open it in a new tab, where it will be highlighted with a green arrow for easy identification.
Adding More Resources: You can add additional resources by clicking the “+” sign in the Linked Items field or in the task’s detailed view before committing the task.
Removing Resources: Click the "x" next to a resource to remove it from the task before it’s committed.
If a resource is deleted after being linked to a task, it will appear as “unknown resource.” Hovering over it will reveal that the resource has been removed or deleted from the patient chart.
To add comments to tasks, locate the task in the Task List and click on the underlined text in the Activity column. A comment box will appear where you can type your message. Once finished, click Add Comment to save it. This feature enhances communication about task progress and allows for additional instructions to be shared among team members.
Tasks can be easily reassigned to different individuals or teams as needed. To do this, simply locate the task in the Task List, then click on the current assignee's name in either the Assignee or Team column. A drop-down menu will appear, allowing you to select a new assignee for the task. This streamlined process ensures that tasks can be quickly redistributed as workloads or responsibilities change within your team.
If a task is assigned to both an individual and a team, it will no longer appear for other team members in the default "me and my teams" filter. To make the task visible again, remove the individual assignee.
Tasks can be completed in two ways: marking as done or marking as closed.
Done means the task has been successfully completed.
Closed is used when the task is no longer relevant or cannot be completed.
Both statuses remove the task from active workflows while ensuring its historical details remain accessible.
Tasks must be assigned to an individual rather than a group to ensure clear ownership and accountability for task completion. While groups can be assigned to tasks for visibility and collaboration—allowing members to manage tasks, add comments, and provide updates—only an individual can mark a task as done or closed. If a task is assigned to a group (e.g., “care navigators”), individual members cannot complete it directly. To mark the task as done or closed, a group member must first reassign the task to themselves.
Canvas can automatically generate tasks based on specific triggers or actions, such as:
Referral Command Workflow: Automatically creates a task when a referral command is delegated.
Image and Lab Reviews: Generate tasks upon signing off these reports.
Administrative Actions: Tasks can be triggered by actions like population health outreach, creating Chart PDFs, or managing incomplete coverages.
API & SDK: Canvas developer tools can automate task generation based on custom logic.
As you continue to use Canvas for task management, you'll likely discover workflows that work best for you and your team. Don't hesitate to customize your approach and share best practices with colleagues to collectively improve your clinic's efficiency and patient care delivery.