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Submit a CommCare intake form from a new Google Doc

Move intake details from a fresh document into CommCare without retyping them.

Trigger

New Document Created

Triggers when a new Google Doc is created. This trigger monitors Google Docs and fires when new documents are detected. Uses timestamp filtering to efficiently poll for new documents.

Action

Submit Form to CommCare

Tool to submit an XForm to CommCare following the OpenRosa standard. Use when you need to submit form data with complete XML including required metadata fields (deviceID, timeStart, timeEnd, username, userID, instanceID).

Why this helps

Important intake information sits in documents while someone manually re-enters it into a case workflow.

  • Reduce duplicate data entry
  • Keep intake processing moving
  • Create consistent OpenRosa submissions

Setup

Build it in a few focused steps.

  • 1Connect Google Docs and CommCare in Notis.
  • 2Create an automation named for new intake submissions.
  • 3Tell Notis to extract approved intake fields and submit the required CommCare XForm.
  • 4Pick New Document Created as the trigger and choose a report channel.
  • 5Test with one real intake document.

Questions about this workflow

What must the document contain?

It must include the information required by your CommCare XForm, including any case or program identifiers.

Can Notis submit incomplete data?

Tell Notis to flag missing required values and report them instead of submitting an invalid form.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

Supported Triggers and Actions

Notis builds workflows that link Google Docs to CommCare. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.

Google Docs triggers

CommCare actions

Recurring trigger

Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.

TriggerScheduled

Create Lookup Table

Tool to create a new lookup table in a CommCare domain. Use when you need to set up reference data structures like product catalogs, price lists, or configuration tables. Requires 'Edit Apps' permission.

ActionInstant

Webhook trigger

Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.

TriggerInstant

Create Web User Invitation

Tool to create an invitation for a new web user in CommCare. Use when you need to invite a user with specific role and permissions. Requires 'Edit Web Users & Edit Access API' permissions.

ActionInstant

New Document Created

Triggers when a new Google Doc is created. This trigger monitors Google Docs and fires when new documents are detected. Uses timestamp filtering to efficiently poll for new documents.

TriggerPolling

List Reports

Tool to retrieve available reports configured in a CommCare project. Use when you need to discover what reports exist before downloading report data via the Download Report Data API.

ActionInstant

Document Deleted

Triggers when an existing Google Doc is deleted (moved to trash). This trigger monitors Google Docs and fires when documents are trashed.

TriggerPolling

Single Sign On

Tool to validate login credentials and retrieve user profile for a mobile worker or web user. Use when you need to authenticate a user and obtain their profile information including roles, permissions, locations, and configuration details.

ActionInstant

Document Placeholder Filled

Triggers when a Google Doc's plain text changes such that a configured placeholder token/pattern is no longer present (i.e., the document has been filled in). This trigger monitors a specific Google Doc and fires when a placeholder pattern that was previously present is no longer found in the document's plain text.

TriggerPolling

Submit Form to CommCare

Tool to submit an XForm to CommCare following the OpenRosa standard. Use when you need to submit form data with complete XML including required metadata fields (deviceID, timeStart, timeEnd, username, userID, instanceID).

ActionInstant

Document Search Update

Triggers when a Google Doc matching a user-defined search query is newly created or updated since the last poll. This trigger uses timestamp filtering to efficiently monitor documents.

TriggerPolling

Submit Form ODK Compatible

Tool to submit form data using ODK-compatible endpoint for Android client compatibility. Use when submitting XForm data to CommCare. Requires properly formatted XML with metadata including unique instanceID.

ActionInstant

Document Structure Changed

Triggers when a Google Doc's structure changes (headers/footers added/removed, tables/images count changes). This trigger monitors a specific document for structural changes like: - Headers added or removed - Footers added or removed - Tables added or removed - Images (inline objects) added or removed - Positioned objects added or removed - Footnotes added or removed

TriggerPolling

Document Updated

Triggers when an existing Google Doc is updated or modified. This trigger monitors Google Docs and fires when documents are updated.

TriggerPolling

Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.

Google Docs and CommCare, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

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