# Triage

> Triage shows one pending testimonial at a time with a key for every decision. How the queue is built, every button and key, and the tally at the end.

Triage is for deciding on many testimonials quickly. It shows one at a
time, large, with a button and a key for every decision. Open it with
**Start triage** at the top of [the Inbox](/docs/testimonials/inbox), or
go to `/sites/<site id>/testimonials/triage`. Triage is not a tab of its
own: it belongs to the Inbox.

## The queue

| Opened from | What is in the queue |
|---|---|
| **Start triage** at the top of the Inbox, shown while something is pending | Pending testimonials that are not waiting for allowance, oldest received first |
| The **Pending** number and **Approve one** in the setup checklist, above the Inbox of a site with few testimonials | The same queue |
| **Triage these** under the Inbox toolbar, shown when a filter is on | Exactly what the Inbox was showing, in its sort |

The line under the title says which queue it is: "Pending testimonials,
oldest first." or the filter in words. Any Inbox filter works in the
address, for example
`/sites/<site id>/testimonials/triage?rating[]=5&has_video=yes`.

A testimonial another member decides on in the meantime drops out of the
Pending queue.

## The screen

| Part | What it shows |
|---|---|
| The top | **Triage**, the queue in words, a counter such as "17 left" over a thin progress line, and **Exit** |
| The testimonial | The person, the rating, the title, the words in large type and the player of a video or audio file |
| Under it | Its tags, a link to the person's other testimonials when there are some, "Looks like a duplicate of another." when it is in the duplicates queue, and **Open the full page** |
| The bar | The decisions. Shown to members who hold `content.write` |

## Every button and key

The bar holds these, from left to right.

| Button | Key | What it does | Moves on |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Back** | Left arrow | Shows the one you just handled again. Offered after the first one | |
| **Reject** | `X` | Rejects it | Yes |
| **Skip** | Right arrow | Leaves it as it is | Yes |
| **Approve** | `L` | Approves it | Yes |
| **Tag** | `T` | Opens **Tag names**. Separate several with commas, and a new name is created. **Add tag** saves | No |
| **Collection** | `C` | Opens a menu of the manual collections, with **Add to collection**. Shown once the site has a manual collection | No |
| **Pin** or **Unpin**, under **More** | `P` | Pins it, or unpins it | No |
| **Edit**, under **More** | `E` | Opens [the edit form](/docs/testimonials/inbox#edit-a-testimonial) and comes back here after saving | No |
| **Move to trash**, under **More** | `Delete` | Moves it to the [trash](/docs/testimonials/trash) | Yes |
| **Mark a highlight**, under the bar | `H` | Opens the sentences of the words. Pick one and press **Mark it**. **Clear the highlight** removes it. Shown when the testimonial has words | No |
| **Exit**, at the top | `Esc` | Back to the Inbox with the same filter. While a menu is open (**Tag**, **Collection**, **More**), `Esc` closes the menu first, and the next `Esc` exits | |
| **Undo**, on the notice | `Z` | Takes the last change back and returns to that testimonial | |
| | The space bar | Plays or pauses the video or audio | No |

You can also select any words in the testimonial, open **Mark a
highlight** and press **Mark it**. The selection becomes the highlight in
place of a whole sentence.

After **Approve**, **Reject**, a tag or any other change, a notice at the
bottom of the screen says what happened and offers **Undo** for 10
seconds. Every one of those changes also stays in
[the undo list](/docs/testimonials/bulk-actions#the-undo-list) for 7
days.

Keys work when keyboard shortcuts are on for your account, and never
while the cursor is in a field. See
[Keyboard shortcuts](/docs/dashboard/keyboard-shortcuts).

## The end of the queue

Triage counts what you approved, rejected and skipped in this run. When
the queue is done the page says "Inbox clear" with the tally, for example
"31 approved, 4 rejected, 2 skipped." Two buttons follow: **Go through
the 2 skipped**, when you skipped some, and **Back to Testimonials**.

The tally lives in the address of the page. Nothing is stored about it,
and reloading keeps it. A testimonial you moved to the trash is not in
the tally.

## API and MCP

| Action | MCP tool | Permission |
|---|---|---|
| Get the next one of a queue | `testimonials_triage` | `analytics.read` |
| Approve, reject | `testimonials_approve`, `testimonials_reject` | `content.write` |
| Tag | `testimonials_update` with `add_tags` | `content.write` |
| Add to a collection | `testimonial_collections_add_items` | `content.write` |
| Mark a highlight | `testimonials_highlight` | `content.write` |
| Pin or unpin | `testimonials_pin` | `content.write` |
| Move to trash | `testimonials_trash` (the API runs it, the MCP tool does not) | `content.write` |

An AI assistant cannot delete anything or move anything to the trash.
The MCP tool `testimonials_trash` runs nothing: it responds with
`human_only` and the address of the testimonial's page, and the
assistant hands you that link.

`testimonials_triage` responds with the next testimonial of a queue, so
an assistant can walk it the way the page does. It takes the filter
inputs of `testimonials_list` or a `view_id`, and with neither it walks
the default queue. Send `after`, the id of the one just handled or
skipped, to get the one that follows it. `data` is `null` when the queue
is done, and `meta.remaining` says how many are left. The full inputs
are in the [API reference](/docs/api) and the
[MCP reference](/docs/mcp).

Ask your assistant:

- "Go through the pending testimonials with me, oldest first."
- "Approve every pending five-star one from a verified person, and show
  me the rest one by one."
- "Reject this one and tag the next one Pricing."

## Good to know

- A testimonial that is waiting for allowance is never in the default
  queue. It can appear in a queue you filtered yourself, where its
  **Approve** button is switched off and says why.
- A member who holds `analytics.read` and not `content.write` can open
  triage and read the testimonial at the front of the queue. The bar of
  decisions is not shown.
- Every button is a plain form or link, so the whole queue can be cleared
  with the mouse or the Tab key when JavaScript is off. The keys, the
  space bar for the player and a highlight from selected words need
  JavaScript. A highlight from the list of sentences does not.
- A queue you filtered keeps a testimonial after you decide on it, unless
  the decision takes it out of the filter. Triage still moves on to the
  next one.
- **Mark it** with no sentence picked and nothing selected changes
  nothing and says "Pick a sentence first, or select some words in the
  testimonial."
- One run walks up to 20,000 testimonials.