Community & Social Services Support

Wellkin

We create hope, help infants, children and youth learn to cope, and together we build strength to manage challenges related to mental health. Wellkin Child & Youth Mental Wellness offers accessible, compassionate programs and services to support families free of charge

Community Living Elgin

We envision a community where all people can live, work and achieve their full potential. Where every person is treated with compassion, dignity and respect; and is supported and encouraged to make choices that affect their personal lives.

• Community Living Elgin offers:
• Adult residential programs and independent living programs in private apartments
• Children’s services
• Education and life skills programs
• Employment and volunteer programs
• Social development and recreational activities
• Support in accessing existing community programs and opportunities

Community Services Coordination Network (CSCN)

One of the key functions performed by the Community Services Coordination Network is the coordination of access to various services and supports for children and adolescents with complex needs, who may require a response from more than one service provider.  Our role is to link individuals and families to appropriate services and supports in their community. The CSCN coordinated access process is intended to augment, not replace, the good planning that is done by families and service providers across the area.

Ontario Board of Education

To access special education supports for your child, you will need to work with your child’s teacher, principal and school boards. Special education programs and services are tailored to meet students’ individual needs. These programs support students with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, autism and more.

By law, all school boards must provide special education programs and/or services for students with special education needs. This page summarizes the processes that school boards must have in place according to the Education Act.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

What does this diagnosis mean?

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication.

Because autism is a spectrum disorder, each person with autism has a distinct set of strengths and challenges. The ways in which people with autism learn, think and problem-solve can range from highly skilled to severely challenged.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

In most provinces and territories, only physicians or psychologists are licensed to diagnose autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In some communities, appropriately trained nurse practitioners may also make this diagnosis.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

What does this diagnosis mean?

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder describes the impacts on the brain and body of someone exposed to alcohol in the womb. It's a lifelong disability, but is preventable with the right services and supports.

People with the disorder may need support with:

• Learning
• Memory
• Attention
• Social Skills
• Motor Skills
• Physical Health
• Communication
• Emotional Regulation

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Multi-Disciplinary Teams including but not limited to:

• Coordinator for case management (e.g., nurse, social worker).
• Physician specifically trained in FASD diagnosis.
• Psychologist.
• Occupational therapist.
• Speech-language pathologist.

Birth Differences

What does this diagnosis mean?

Birth defects are structural changes present at birth that can affect almost any part of the body. They may affect how the body looks, works or both. Birth defects can cause problems in overall health, how the body develops or how the body works. Birth defects may range from mild to serious health conditions.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Prenatal genetic screening can tell a pregnant woman her chance of having a baby with Down syndrome, trisomy 18, or an open neural tube defect.The tests can consist of one or more blood tests and ultrasound. These tests are ordered by your health care provider and can be done at any hospital or laboratory.

Acquired Brain Injuries

What does this diagnosis mean?

An acquired brain injury is damage to the brain that occurs any time after a person is born. There are 2 types of acquired brain injury; traumatic and non-traumatic. A traumatic brain injury is the result of a physical force from outside the head, such as:

• a fall from a bicycle
• motor vehicle accident
• sports injury
• an assault

A non-traumatic brain injury is the result of a problem other than trauma, such as:

• an infection, such as meningitis or encephalitis
• blocked or interrupted blood flow to the brain, called a stroke
• a swollen or ruptured blood vessel in the brain, called an aneurysm
• not enough oxygen to the brain, such as in near drowning
• a growth in the brain, called a tumour

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Developmental Pediatrician

Learning Disabilities

What does this diagnosis mean?

A learning disability is a differnece in brain function that significantly hinders our ability to learn. It is a pattern of neurological dysfunction in the brain that causes a person to have difficulty correctly receiving information (perception), correctly processing information (cognition/thinking), or satisfactorily responding to information (written and verbal expression, visual-motor coordination, memory, etc.).

Who can provide the diagnosis?

A psycho-educational battery of formal and informal tests is used to determine patterns of strength and weakness as compared to intellectual ability. This battery of tests are administered by a registered psychologist.

Mental Health

What does this diagnosis mean?

Mental health is the state of your psychological and emotional well-being. It is a necessary resource for living a healthy life and a main factor in overall health. It does not mean the same thing as mental illness. However, poor mental health can lead to mental and physical illness.

Cluster A: paranoid, schizoid and schizotypal personality disorders. These are characterized by feeling paranoid, distrustful and suspicious.

Cluster B: impulsive personality disorders, such as borderline, narcissistic, histrionic and antisocial personality disorders. These are characterized by having difficulty controlling emotions, fears, desires and anger.

Cluster C: anxious personality disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive, dependent and avoidant personality disorders. These are characterized by experiencing compulsions and anxiety.

People with personality disorders are at increased risk for self-harming behaviours and suicide. They may also have more difficulty getting along with others than do people without personality disorders.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Physician (i.e. Family Doctor, Pediatrician, Nurse Practitioner, Physician's Assistant), Psychologist

Down Syndrome

What does this diagnosis mean?

Down syndrome is a naturally occurring chromosomal arrangement that has always existed and is universal across racial, gender, and socio-economic lines (i.e. Trisomy 21, Translocation, Mosaicism)

People with Down syndrome have:

• Some intellectual disability
• Some delay in development which may include delays in speech development and motor skills
• Some characteristic physical features, including a recognizable facial appearance and short stature

Who can provide the diagnosis?

After birth, your baby’s provider gives your baby a physical exam and checks for common physical characteristics of Down syndrome. To confirm your baby has Down syndrome, she sends a sample of your baby’s blood to a lab for testing.

Behavioural Disorder

What does this diagnosis mean?

Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD):
Typically negativistic, defiant, uncooperative, and irritable. They lose their tempers easily and are mean and spiteful towards others. They are mostly defiant towards authority figures, but they may also be hostile to their siblings or peers.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):
ADHD is characterized by levels of hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention that are disproportionately excessive for the child’s age and development.

Conduct Disorder (CD):
Characterized by repetitive and persistent manifestations of serious aggressive or non-aggressive behaviours against people, animals or property such as being defiant, belligerent, destructive, threatening, physically cruel, deceitful, disobedient or dishonest, excessive fighting or bullying, fire-setting, stealing, repeated lying, intentional injury, forced sexual activity and frequent school truancy.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

A Doctor or a mental health professional such as a Psychologist or a Psychiatrist.

Deaf/Hard of Hearing

What does this diagnosis mean?

The Canadian Association of the Deaf-Association des Sourds du Canada recognizes a person to be medically/audiologically deaf when that person has little or no functional hearing and depends upon visual rather than auditory communication. “Visual means of communication” include Sign language, lipreading, speech-reading, and reading and writing. “Auditory means of communication” include voice, hearing, and hearing aids and devices.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Audiologist

Blind/Low Vision

What does this diagnosis mean?

Vision impairment occurs when an eye condition affects the visual system and its vision functions.

Globally, the leading causes of vision impairment and blindness are:

• refractive errors
• cataract
• diabetic retinopathy
• glaucoma
• age-related macular degeneration

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Ophthamologist

Epilepsy

What does this diagnosis mean?

A health care professional may consider epilepsy as a possible diagnosis when a person has had two or more seizures. A medical diagnosis of epilepsy is based on multiple pieces of information: the description of the episodes; the person’s medical and family history; and the results of diagnostic tests.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

Health Care Provider (i.e. Physician, Neurologist)
A Neurologist would be the specialist who would follow-up with Seizure Monitoring, Medication and Intervention.

Sensory Processing Disorder

What does this diagnosis mean?

A disorder in which the brain cannot properly synthesize multisensory information. This causes hypersensitivity (over-responsiveness to stimuli) or hyposensitivity (under-responsiveness to stimuli). If a child is affected by hypersensitivity, they may have extreme or fearful responses to specific textures, sounds, and tastes. Conversely, children with hyposensitivity may seem fearless, inappropriately touching people and/or objects and putting themselves in dangerous situations due to their under-reaction to pain.

Who can provide the diagnosis?

A doctor who has special training to care for children with development and behaviour concerns or a mental health professional can check for these conditions. Your child may also see an occupational therapist (OT). The OT will observe how your child stands and balances, his or her coordination, eye movements, and how your child responds to stimulation.