Pause node

The Pause node holds a patient until a time, an event, or whichever comes first, then routes on what happened.

The Pause node (code name Wait) holds a patient on the journey until something happens. It can wait for a moment in time, for one or more events, or for both, and continues down the branch that wins. A wait can last minutes, days or months.

When to use it

Wait a fixed time: "3 days after the visit, send a feedback request."
Wait until a time relative to a record: "2 days before the appointment, send a reminder."
Wait for an event, with a deadline: "wait for the lab result, but no longer than 7 days."
Wait for another linked journey: "wait until the partner's journey signals transfer_ready."

You need at least one of the two: Wait for an event, until a time, or both — at least one.

Configuration

Time branch

Field	What it does	Options and default
Anchor	The moment the wait is measured from.	Now (when the pause starts) (default), An appointment's time, A patient attribute, An upstream node field, A date on the patient's record.
Which appointment, Time field	Shown for an appointment anchor. Picks the appointment (a resolver) and which of its times to use.	Time field: Slot start (default), Slot end, Check-in time, Completed time.
Patient field	Shown for a patient attribute anchor.	For example `preferred_followup_time`.
Upstream node, Field	Shown for an upstream node field anchor. Picks an earlier step and the field it wrote.	For example `slot_start_time`.
Date	Shown for a date on the patient's record. Lists the dates recorded on the patient's clinical record.	Armed timers follow the record: when this date changes, the wait re-anchors.
Offset direction	Before or after the anchor.	After anchor (+) (default) or Before anchor (−).
Amount, Unit	Size of the offset.	Unit: minutes, hours, days. 0 means exactly at the anchor.
Outcome	Optional name recorded when the time branch wins.	Free text, for example `timed_out`.
Missing-anchor policy	What to do if the anchor has no value when the Pause starts. Enabled only when the anchor is not Now (otherwise it shows Only applies when an anchor is set).	Fall back to activation moment (default) or Wait silently for events (skip time branch).
Routing when the event arrives	Optional routes for the time branch: each has a Route outcome and a condition. Use Add route.	First matching route wins; the Outcome above is the fallback.

The time branch is saved only once you change one of its fields. A Pause whose time-branch fields you never touched waits for its events only.

Routing conditions live on the outgoing edges. In most journeys you leave the routes empty and put conditions on the connections instead.

Event branches

Select Add event branch for each event the Pause should listen for. The section notes: Events from other modules, and the linked-journey events listed below. A journey cannot wait on its own lifecycle.

Field	What it does	Options and default
Event type	The event that ends the wait. Required: Event type is required.	Lists catalog events that can end a pause, shown as label · event type. See the Event catalog.
Outcome	Optional name recorded when this event wins.	Free text.
Signal name	Shown for `journey.linked_signal`. The name the other journey sends with its Tell step. Empty listens to every signal.	Free text.
From the role	Shown for linked-journey events. Only from the linked journey holding this role. Empty means any.	Free text, for example `partner`.
Only when…	Only when… (over the event payload, fixed when the wait starts): a filter over the event's contents.	Condition builder with the event's fields.
From step	Wait for the task, form or document of one named step of this journey, such as task done or document signed. Any step accepts the event from anywhere.	Any step (default) or one of the journey's steps that can be waited on.
Correlation expression override	Shown when From step is Any step. Changes how an event is matched to this patient's run.	Leave empty unless your implementation team asks you to set it.
Routing when the event arrives	Routes for this event: Route outcome plus a condition over the event.	First matching route wins; the outcome above is the default.

The panel ends with If this step is already in the past.

Outcomes and branches

In the edge editor, each connection out of a Pause picks a Pause branch: None, Time branch, or Event 1, Event 2 and so on (each shown with its event type, for example Event 1: appointment.cancelled).

The edge editor has no Outcome list for a Pause. To route on an outcome name you typed in the panel, add a condition row with the field Completed outcome, the operator == and the name you typed as the value.

What happened	Branch	Outcome recorded
The time came first	Time branch	The first matching time route, else the time branch Outcome
An event came first	Event n	The first matching route for that event, else that branch's Outcome

The builder warns when the time branch has no default or plain connection, because the Pause could finish with nowhere to go.

What happens when it runs

The Pause starts waiting for every event branch and for the moment set by the anchor and offset.
Whichever happens first wins. The other branches stop waiting.
For an event, the Only when… filter must match, and the event must concern this patient's run. If the event branch has routes and none matches, and the branch has no Outcome, the event is ignored and the Pause keeps waiting.
For the time branch, if routes exist and none matches and there is no Outcome, the Pause finishes but no connection is followed, so that branch of the journey ends there.

Special cases:

Anchor in the past. If the moment has already passed, the If this step is already in the past choice applies. With Skip it, a time-only Pause finishes at once down its time branch; a Pause that also has event branches keeps waiting for the events.
Missing anchor. With Fall back to activation moment, the offset counts from when the Pause started. With Wait silently for events (skip time branch), the time branch is dropped and only events can end the wait.
Dates on the record. When the anchor is a date on the patient's record and that date changes, the wait moves with it.
Linked signals that arrive early. If a linked journey sent a matching signal before this Pause started, the Pause finishes at once when it starts.
Own lifecycle. A journey cannot wait on its own lifecycle. Do not pick this journey's own start or end events.

The patient sees nothing at a Pause. Staff see the patient as waiting on this step in the Patients tab.

Example

Reminder two days before the appointment, unless it is cancelled.

Add a Pause after an Appointment step named book_visit.
Anchor: An appointment's time; Which appointment: the appointment booked in an upstream Appointment node; Time field: Slot start.
Offset direction: Before anchor (−); Amount: 2; Unit: days.
Add an event branch with the event type Appointment cancelled.
In the edge editor, set Pause branch to Time branch on the connection to a Reach step that sends the reminder, and to Event 1 on the connection to a Close step with the outcome label cancelled.

If the patient booked less than two days ahead, the reminder time is already past. With the journey default Skip it, the Pause still waits for the cancellation event, so no reminder goes out. Choose Move it to now on this Pause if you want the reminder sent straight away instead.

Tips and limitations

Use the time branch as a safety net on every event wait so a patient is never stuck for ever.
To wait for a task or signature from an earlier step that moved on at once, add an event branch with From step set to that step.
To react to a Capture form sent with Move on at once, wait for the Feedback form submitted event.

Card hint

The node card shows No time branch (required) whenever the time branch has not been set, even if the Pause has event branches. An event-only Pause is valid; you can ignore this hint in that case.

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