MONTREAL -- Opposition party Quebec Solidaire is proposing a two-week express course to train assistant attendants to help resolve the crisis in residential and long-term care centres (CHSLDs) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Legault government has admitted that it is in desperate need of help in the CHSLDs, particularly care workers, and QS believes it has found a solution.

In an interview with The Canadian Press on Tuesday, MNA Sol Zanetti said that two-week full-time training was previously provided for students who were expected to replace attendants during the summer vacation.

He himself attended one of these training courses in the past and believes that it would be possible to quickly train volunteers who could assist the attendants and work under the supervision of care teams in the establishments.

Zanetti was careful to specify that it takes 950 hours to train a beneficiary attendant in good and due form. He is aware of this, but a two-week express course would allow novices to learn the basics and then lend a hand in the network.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2020.