Free Pictures for a Doctor Visit: Visual Supports for Autistic and Non-Speaking People
Updated: 3 days ago
A doctor visit can be a heavy experience for a profoundly autistic and non-speaking person. The waiting room is full of unfamiliar people and sounds, the examination room is strange, and the doctor comes close with instruments. Often the visit happens exactly when the person already feels unwell, and they may not be able to ask what will happen next.
Pictures make the visit predictable. When the steps can be seen in advance and in the same order as they happen, the doctor's office is no longer a completely unknown place.
A doctor visit in pictures
The Lainattu Rauha® picture bank has pictures for the whole visit. Here they are in the order a typical visit goes:
Health centre
I arrive at the clinic
Health centre waiting area
The nurse welcomes me
I sit on the edge of the examination bed
Doctor
The doctor shows the instrument
Listening with a stethoscope
Ear examination
Throat examination
Blood pressure measurement
The medical appointment is over
Health centre I arrive at the clinic Health centre waiting area The nurse welcomes me I sit on the edge of the examination bed Doctor The doctor shows the instrument Listening with a stethoscope Ear examination Throat examination Blood pressure measurement The medical appointment is over
Get to know the instruments in advance
The stethoscope and the blood pressure cuff are the most exciting part of the visit for many. You can get to know them with pictures at home, and the doctor can first show the instrument on a soft toy. A comfort object can stay with the person for the whole examination.
I explore a stethoscope I explore a blood pressure cuff The doctor examines a soft toy My comfort object is with me at the examination
Pictures for adults too
Doctor visits are part of adult life too. Listening with a stethoscope, blood pressure measurement and many other examinations are also available as an adult man and an adult woman. The picture bank already has over 700 pictures of adults, and more are added as needed.
Listening with a stethoscope, adult man Blood pressure measurement, adult woman
How to use the pictures
Look at the pictures together for a few days before the visit. Repetition makes them familiar.
Choose only the pictures that belong to this particular visit. If the ears are not examined, there is no need to show the ear picture.
Take the pictures with you to the clinic and show each picture when that step begins.
Tell the doctor or nurse about the pictures. They can also show a picture before each examination.
When the visit is over, show what happens next. This way the person knows the visit has ended.
When you cannot say where it hurts
The doctor often asks where it hurts and how it feels. A non-speaking person can show the answer with a picture. The picture bank has pictures of pain in different parts of the body, and a familiar adult can help describe how the person feels.
Earache Sore throat An adult helps me describe how I feel
Read also When Symptoms Cannot Be Described in Words.
Download the pictures for free
The Lainattu Rauha® picture bank has over 2,600 pictures for everyday life with profound autism. Every picture is available in colour and in black and white, and you can type your own text on a picture before printing. The picture bank is free and needs no sign-up.
Search for example for doctor or examination to find the pictures for the visit.
Subscribe to the newsletter
Get news of new pictures and free materials. As a welcome gift, you get the guide When everyday life is too heavy.
Pictures © Lainattu Rauha®
Comments