# What is a care flow?
URL: https://docs.awellhealth.com/docs/get-started/what-is-a-care-flow

> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.awellhealth.com/llms.txt).



A care flow is a series of steps performed for, with, or by a patient, to reach or keep a good state
of health. It can be a two-step protocol or a program that runs for years.

## Care flow is the canonical term, whatever the local name [#care-flow-is-the-canonical-term-whatever-the-local-name]

Organizations already have a word for this, and it may not be ours:

care program · care pathway · clinical pathway · clinical protocol · care process · care process
model · patient journey · patient pathway · care path · guideline · patient onboarding flow

We use **care flow** as the canonical term throughout these docs. Teams that say "pathway" can read
that word wherever "care flow" appears: they mean the same thing here.

> In the product itself, "pathway" still appears in places, especially in the API. Care flow and
> pathway are used interchangeably.

## A care flow is a sequence with a health goal [#a-care-flow-is-a-sequence-with-a-health-goal]

* **It's a sequence.** Something happens, then something else, and the order matters.
* **It has a health goal.** Steps exist to reach or maintain a state of health, not just to move
  paperwork.

If both are true, it can be built, run, and improved in Awell, however small or long-running it is.

## A care flow is also the unit of change [#a-care-flow-is-also-the-unit-of-change]

The health goal is broad, but the reason to build a care flow is usually narrower: a number the
organization is trying to move, like the time a task takes, or the share of eligible patients who
complete a screening.

A care flow is the smallest thing that can be changed and measured on its own. Naming the number first is
the difference between a process that was rebuilt and a process that demonstrably improved. See
[Decide what to improve](/docs/improve-and-analyse/decide-what-to-improve).

## Next steps [#next-steps]

**Next:** **Awell platform overview** — which part of the platform designs a care flow, and which part
runs it.