Intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder and physical disability
The individual, their family and their support network are the foundations of the organization of services that must contribute to developing and maintaining their abilities, compensating their disabilities and enabling their social participation.
Service request
First service following a diagnosis
For users and their family: Call 811 or go to the psychosocial reception of your CLSC to talk to a professional and open your file.
For partners and health professionals: The referent must fill out the 
service request form by specifying the impacts of the problem on lifestyle habits and the disabling situations. They must also provide the diagnostic reports confirming the intellectual disability, the autism spectrum disorder, the physical disability or the global developmental delay.
You do not have a diagnosis?
If you have doubts on your situation or that of your child, talk with your family physician, who can refer you to the appropriate service. You may, at any time, call 811 or go to the psychosocial reception of your CLSC to talk to an intervenor.
Reopening a file
Please do not come in person to ask for an appointment. Simply fill out the service request form and send it by email address to the ID-ASD-PD access gateway: 
guichetditsadp.09cisss@ssss.gouv.qc.ca.
Organization of services
Our services are organized around the objectives of the person, of their family or of their relatives, and they require their participation in the decisions, the discussions and the actions concerning them. The user, and their family or relatives, are included in the intervention plan. All services of the program are provided by episode, which means that they are offered over a specified period of time. Certain services may be provided individually or in group, in our premises or in different environments. The intensity and duration of our services may vary depending on the needs, the capacity of the person and their family, and the resources available.
Available services
Contact information
Monday to Friday
8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Evaluation and orientation services
As soon as the service request arrives, an analysis process is initiated to evaluate the person's situation and required service(s) and to direct the person and their relatives toward the appropriate team, which will update the required support and intervention measures.
Physical disability services
Language disability
Users followed for a language disability have significant and persistent neurological disabilities related to communication, including auditory processing. These disabilities are likely to limit social participation.
Access criteria
Have a diagnosis or a problem related to a language disability, as established by a professional qualified to do so, and have a communication disorder.
Hearing impairment
Users followed for a hearing impairment have:
- Significant and persistent disabilities in terms of hearing acuity and auditory discrimination;
- Significant and persistent disabilities related to the presence of tinnitus or any other limitation in the ability to perceive an audio stimulus.
These disabilities are likely to affect or limit their ability to communicate with others, and consequently influence their level of social participation.
Access criteria
Have one of the following characteristics: loss of hearing acuity of at least 20 dB HL on the four frequencies 500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz and 4000 Hz (children), loss of hearing acuity of at least 25 dB HL on the four frequencies (adults), auditory processing disorder, tinnitus, or limited capacity to perceive an audio stimulus (sound, noise, music, speech).
Motor disability
Users followed for a motor disability have neuro-musculo-skeletal or neuro sensori motor troubles or after-effects that correspond to one of the following seven profiles: encephalopathy, myelopathy, arthropathy, neuropathy, central nervous system damage and loss of integrity. These troubles or after-effects are likely to cause motor or neurological disabilities.
Access criteria
Have a diagnosis or a problem related to a motor disability, as established by a professional qualified to do so, and have a stable medical condition.
Visual impairment
Users followed for a visual impairment have significant and persistent disabilities in terms of visual acuity or field of view, and significant and persistent neurological disabilities in terms of visual abilities.
Access criteria
Have one of the following characteristics: Decrease in the visual acuity of each eye below 6/21, field of view below 60 degrees in the 90 and 180 degree meridians with correction by means of appropriate ophthalmic lenses, visual acuity of 6/18 or less for those with a degenerative vision problem, physical disability (motor, auditory or language), intellectual disability or complete hemianopia.
Technical aids
For motor disabilities: Evaluation, recommendation and attribution of mobility and posture aids, such as wheelchairs, strollers, orthoses, posture support devices and orthopedic shoes. The technical aids service also offers the maintenance and repair of the provided aids.
For hearing and visual impairments: Attribution of assistive listening or visual devices, such as an adapted alarm clock, a sound amplifier, a white cane, a magnifying glass, a TV-viewer, etc.
Critères et balises pour les services à domicile du Service des aides techniques (French only)
Intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder services
Intellectual disability
Users followed for an intellectual disability have an intellectual disability defined as follows: “disability characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior, which covers many everyday social and practical skills. This disability originates before the age of 18” (American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities).
Access criteria
Have an intellectual disability diagnosis established by a professional qualified to do so.
Global developmental delay
Users followed for a global developmental delay are children under the age of 6 with a significant delay in two or more spheres of their development.
Access criteria
Have a global developmental delay assessed by a professional qualified to do so.
Autism spectrum disorders
Users followed for an autism spectrum disorder are people of all ages with impairments in social interactions, qualitative impairments in communication, and restricted, repetitive and stereotypic patterns of behaviour, interests and activities.
Access criteria
Have a diagnosis or a diagnostic hypothesis of autism spectrum disorder established by a professional qualified to do so.
Family support
The support offered to families and relatives serves to recognize and strengthen their abilities to stimulate the person’s development and to favour the person’s integration in their environment.
The teams support parents and families in their numerous steps to integrate the person and they collaborate to the development of the support network.
Families can get support for the acceptance of the diagnosis and in the response to their needs regarding specialized respite, assistance, prevention, placement, and crisis and emergency situations.
In conjunction with several partners, the CISSS de la Côte-Nord provides services of various intensity and duration, depending on the needs, capacities and resources of the family.
Home support
Services of the 
home support program are intended for people permanently or temporarily confined to their homes by a disability and whose health condition requires some care or assistance.
Accommodation services
Accommodation services are provided to those (children or adults) who no longer have a residential living environment and who cannot integrate a natural living environment (apartment (supervised or not), family living environment, etc.). The establishment provides accommodation places in a network of family-type (FTR) or intermediate (IR) resources.
Accommodation resources for children (in French)
Accommodation resources for adults (in French)
Additional information
In collaboration with the Association régionale de loisirs pour personnes handicapées de la Côte-Nord (ARLPH) and the Association québécoise pour le loisir des personnes handicapées (AQLPH), here is the link to get the Companion Leisure Card for tourism and leisure activities. Because we should all have the same rights!
Notice to everyone who owns the Tourism and Leisure Companion Sticker (TLCS): you need to make a request to replace the sticker for the Companion Leisure Card by October 2020. The processing time is currently more than 6 weeks.
For more information, contact the Association régionale de loisirs pour personnes handicapées de la Côte-Nord at 418 589-5220 or visit their website: www.arlphcotenord.com (in French).
Accessibility
To learn more about our Action plan regarding people with disabilities, the public policy on the access to public documents and services, or the accessibility to services and documents and web accessibility, visit our Accessibility section.