Lab Tasks
Overview
Lab tasks are flexible, ticket-style work items designed to track anything that falls outside the standard production workflow. While production tasks follow a rigid case-based lifecycle (create line items, schedule steps, start, finish), lab tasks can represent virtually any type of internal or cross-functional work — billing disputes, customer complaints, IT requests, quality investigations, onboarding checklists, or follow-ups.
Each lab task is created from a task template, which defines the task's available states, custom attributes, default SLA policy, and which workstation it belongs to. This means different types of work can have completely different workflows, fields, and tracking rules while all living in the same system.
Lab tasks appear on the My Work page alongside production tasks, giving technicians and managers a unified view of everything on their plate.
Key Features
Customizable States
Unlike production tasks which only have start and finish, lab tasks move through custom states that you define. States are grouped into four categories — Submitted, In Progress, Waiting on Customer, and Resolved — and each task template can use a different set of states. See the Task States documentation for details.
Tags
Tasks can be tagged with color-coded labels for quick visual categorization and filtering. Tags are shared across all task types — you define them once and apply them to any task.
Common uses include tagging by urgency ("Urgent," "Low Priority"), or by type ("Remake," "Warranty," "Internal").
SLA Tracking
Lab tasks support SLA policies with Time to Resolve and Time to Close targets. SLAs can be applied automatically through a template default or manually on individual tasks. Timers pause automatically when a task enters a Waiting on Customer state (if configured). See the SLA documentation for details.
Exception Tasks
When a task template has the Exception Task (case task) flag enabled, tasks created from that template require a linked case. These tasks appear directly on the case view, giving the case a visible record of any issues, follow-ups, or exceptions associated with it.
Exception tasks can be created from the case view or from a conversation (with the case selected). They inherit all the same features as regular lab tasks — custom states, attributes, SLAs, tags, and comments.
Custom Attributes
Each task template can define custom attributes — additional fields that appear on tasks created from that template. Attributes let you capture structured data specific to each type of work without cluttering unrelated task types.
Attribute Types
Type | Description |
Text | Single-line free text |
Integer | Whole numbers |
Decimal | Numbers with decimal precision |
Checkbox | Yes/no toggle |
Date & Time | Date and time picker |
Dropdown | Selection from a predefined list of options |
Files | File attachments (up to 10 files per attribute, 100MB each) |
Attributes can also reference entities in your system, creating direct links to related records:
Type | Links To |
Doctor | A doctor record |
Office | An office record |
Customer | A customer (doctor + office relationship) |
Billing Account | A billing account |
Case | A case record |
Invoice | An invoice |
Statement | A statement |
Payment | A payment |
Credit | A credit |
Attribute Settings
When defining attributes on a template, you control:
Visible on Create — whether the field appears on the task creation form
Required to Create — whether the field must be filled before the task can be created
Visible to Customers — whether the field is shown when the task is shared with a customer through the portal
Required to Create for Customers - whether the field must be filled before the customer can submit the task
The latter two are not affecting anything yet - those features are in development.
Attributes that are not visible on create can still be filled in after the task is created from the task detail view.
Tasks and Conversations
Lab tasks and conversations are tightly integrated, allowing your team to link operational work directly to customer communication.
Creating Tasks from Conversations
From any conversation, you can create a new lab task directly from the details sidebar. Select a task template, fill in the fields, and the task is automatically linked to that conversation. If the conversation has linked cases, you can select one from a dropdown when creating an exception task.
Once linked, the task appears in the conversation's details panel. Clicking it opens the task detail view inline, so you can review the task's state, attributes, and comments without leaving the conversation.
Creating Conversations from Tasks
From any lab task's detail view, you can create a new conversation, and it will be automatically linked back to the task. This is useful when a task requires customer outreach — for example, if a quality investigation task needs you to contact the doctor for additional information.
The linked conversation appears in the task's sidebar. Clicking it opens the conversation messages inline within the task sheet, so you can read and send messages without navigating away.
Comments
Lab tasks have an internal comments section for team communication. Comments support:
@mentions — tag teammates by typing
@followed by their name. Mentioned users receive notifications and the task appears in their Mentions view on the My Work page.File attachments — attach files to comments using the paperclip button. Uploaded files can be downloaded by clicking on them in the comment thread.
Comments are internal by default — they are not visible to customers even if the task is shared through the customer portal. Use comments for internal discussion, status updates, handoff notes, or documenting decisions.