Case management · Autessa Ethics Hotline
Case workflow
Autessa Ethics Hotline gives every case a clear workflow: New, Triage, Investigating, Resolved and Closed, or Dismissed after review. Each move is a button with a confirmation that says exactly what the reporter will see, whether they will be emailed, and when the retention period starts.
Why it matters
Without a workflow, cases stall and reporters hear nothing
An investigation has natural stages, and the reporter deserves to know which one their concern is in. But committee wording like “dismissed” can be hurtful, and changes made by accident can’t always be undone. Ethics Hotline uses plain states, shows the reporter a kinder label for each, and confirms every move.
What you get
- Six states: New, Triage, Investigating, Resolved, Closed and Dismissed.
- Only the moves allowed from the current state are offered, as plainly named buttons such as Start triage, Start investigation, Mark resolved, Close case and Dismiss.
- A confirmation for each move: from what to what, what the reporter will see, and whether they are emailed.
- Reporter-facing labels: Received, Being reviewed, Under investigation, Resolved, Closed, Closed after review.
- Closing or dismissing starts the retention period; a closed case can’t be reopened or take new messages.
- The date of each state is kept, which drives the median time to triage and to close.
- Every change is logged and appears as a status line in the conversation.
How it works
How does case workflow work?
New
The report arrives. The committee is emailed, and the reporter sees “Received”.
Triage
A member starts triage to assess scope and urgency. The reporter sees “Being reviewed”. This is the moment “time to triage” measures.
Investigating
Interviews, records and analysis. The reporter sees “Under investigation”.
Resolved
Findings and actions are recorded in the outcome. The reporter sees “Resolved”.
Closed or Dismissed
The case is finished, or closed after review without investigation. Retention starts. The reporter sees “Closed” or “Closed after review”.
Every option
States, buttons and what the reporter sees
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| New | Button: Back to new. Reporter sees: Received. |
| Triage | Button: Start triage. Reporter sees: Being reviewed. |
| Investigating | Button: Start investigation. Reporter sees: Under investigation. |
| Resolved | Button: Mark resolved. Reporter sees: Resolved. |
| Closed | Button: Close case. Reporter sees: Closed. No more changes or messages; retention starts. |
| Dismissed | Button: Dismiss. Reporter sees: Closed after review. Retention starts. |
Permissions
Who can do what?
The hotline’s access rules are enforced on the server for every request, not just hidden in the interface.
| Who | What they can do |
|---|---|
| Ethics committee member | Move any case they can see through the allowed states. |
| Reporter (anyone with the hotline link; no account, no sign-in) | See the reporter label for each state, and a timeline of changes. |
| Committee member left out of a report | Nothing on that case. |
Connected
How it connects to the rest of the hotline
Ethics Hotline feature
Case outcomes
The resolution and summary recorded alongside the final state.
Ethics Hotline feature
Reporter status emails
What confidential reporters receive on every move.
Ethics Hotline feature
Hotline metrics
Median days to triage and to close come from these dates.
Ethics Hotline feature
Retention and purge
The clock that starts at Closed or Dismissed.
FAQ
Questions about case workflow
What are the stages of an ethics hotline case?
New, Triage, Investigating, Resolved and Closed, with Dismissed for reports closed after review. The reporter sees friendlier labels: Received, Being reviewed, Under investigation, Resolved, Closed and Closed after review.
Can a closed case be reopened?
No. A closed case can’t be reopened or take new messages, and the confirmation says so before you close it. A reporter with more to say can make a new report and mention the case code.
Is the reporter told when a case changes state?
They see the new status and a timeline line whenever they check. Confidential reporters are also emailed the new status, with no details.
100% customizable, code and all
Make Autessa Ethics Hotline fully your own.
Use it out of the box, then change anything. Ask Autobot, Autessa’s AI builder, for a new field, screen, report, workflow or agent and it builds it into your copy of the app. Or open the code and edit it yourself. Nothing is locked: the app, its data and its code are yours.
Start free and make it yours