The government wants to improve services and supports for adults who have developmental disabilities and their families.  It wants services and supports to:

• Be fairer, so that everyone is treated the same way;
  
  
• Be flexible, so that people’s needs are addressed as best as possible; and
  
  
• Be sustainable, so that the system will be here for the future.

To make these changes, the government has created the Services and Supports to Promote the Social Inclusion of Persons with Developmental Disabilities Act, 2008, and Regulations. 

As of July 1, 2011, access to Ministry-funded adult developmental services and supports will be provided through application entities.  These application entities will be called Developmental Services Ontario (DSO). 

The DSOs will be the primary contact point for people who need information about services and supports in their community, and the single access point for people who want to apply for Ministry-funded adult developmental services and supports in each of the Ministry’s nine regions.   

According to the Act, the Ministry must develop policy directives and rules for the DSOs that are enforceable by law.  These policy directives provide instructions for the following work that the DSOs will do:

• giving information to the public about available services and supports and about the application process;
  
  
• confirming eligibility for people applying for services and supports for the first time;
  
  
• answering any questions or concerns people may have about the application process and services provided by the DSOs;
  
  
• following the same steps and using the same tools to assess everyone who is eligible to apply for services and supports by using the new Application Package; and
  
  
• providing information to the Ministry to continue to improve the system of services and supports for people with developmental disabilities.

Having policy directives for DSOs is a good way to make sure that everyone who needs services and supports can expect the same customer service from DSOs wherever they live, and also to make sure that if they move from community to community, they will not have to repeat their stories each time.

It will also be easier for new people to apply for services and supports as they will only need to contact one organization, the DSO in their region, to:

• get information;
  
  
• confirm their eligibility;
  
  
• have their service and support needs assessed; and
  
  
• be linked to available Ministry-funded services and supports.