Hospital scan

A hospital scan social story for a child aged 4–8, covering the ordinary steps around the appointment

A hospital scan social story should describe the non-clinical sequence only: arriving, changing, waiting, the sounds, and what marks the end. Ask the care team for that order, ask where you are allowed to wait, and keep every medical instruction theirs — then read the script below.

Start your child's free preview

One browser preview: your child’s full story outline, a cover, and one inside page — watermarked, no card needed.

Use it tonight

Read this to your child before the appointment

Confirm each step with the care team before you say it out loud, including where you will be standing. Do not promise timings, sensations or results.

  1. On the day of your appointment we will go to the hospital so a big camera can take pictures of the inside of you.
  2. You will lie down on a narrow bed, and the camera is a large ring that the bed slides into.
  3. It makes knocking and humming sounds, and those sounds are the camera working.
  4. Your job is small: stay still, like a quiet moon, and before we start we will ask together where I will be.
  5. When the pictures are finished you get your own clothes back, and we go home.
Use the story in real life

Prepare, rehearse, then make it true.

A personalized book works best when its details match what your child will actually experience. These pointers help you shape the story — and keep using it after the day arrives.

Before creating

Gather reliable details

Ask the care team for the actual non-clinical sequence, including arrival, clothing, waiting, sounds, caregiver access, and what marks the end. Medical instructions should always come from the provider.

Before the event

Practice a small next step

Use a toy to walk through visible steps and practice any simple job the team has confirmed, such as lying still. Do not use the story to guarantee timing, sensations, or results.

Afterward

Keep the book honest

After the visit, let the child correct the story with what truly happened. Naming one surprise and one completed step can make the experience more understandable without minimizing it.

Example book

Read one before you make your own.

The example book below rehearses the same ordinary steps with a toy astronaut going first, and leaves everything clinical to the care team. Sprokle does not diagnose a child or replace professional advice.