[Is psychiatry relevant in autism? A brief historical perspective on the role of psychiatry in diagnosis, and support to autistic people].

Based on an overview of the recent history of professional roles in autism diagnosis and support in the province of Quebec, this paper supports the view that hearing what autistic people say, combined with interdisciplinary, but hierarchically ruled task sharing in clinical settings, and to a pacific confrontation between scientific and clinical demands, prevents the high jacking of autism for corporatist or ideological purposes.