Queensland's "mud army" is changing out of its gumboots to reach out to the elderly community as the coronavirus impacts life, but they shouldn't be surprised if a feisty senior says 'thanks, but no thanks'.
Queenslanders over the age of 65 have been told to stay at home by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
"We know with coronavirus, our most vulnerable people in our community are the most at risk, " Ms Palaszczuk said on Wednesday.
"If we can look after our most vulnerable, we can prevent them from ending up in the hospital or even in ICU.
"We know there's an army of people out there, that are willing to step up to the plate and help our most vulnerable. We want to protect one million seniors."
Seniors, especially those over 65 with chronic conditions, and Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders over 50 with chronic conditions, are urged to stay home.
The rest of the state has been urged to join the care army and "support a senior", including the thousands of volunteers who joined the "mud army" who went street by street to help people clean up after the 2011 floods.
"We can all do this. Support a senior in your suburb," the premier urged young Queenslanders.
However, not everyone is on board with the 'care army' - including the elderly.
Broadbeach senior citizens president John Quinn says the community may be elderly, but they aren't all feeble.
"To be honest, we're a pretty independent bunch and we don't all need looking after," he said.
He said the club had more than 200 members and not one has asked for any help during the COVID-19 crisis.
"They have our number and some have called for a chat to alleviate the boredom, but if you keep offering to help, they might actually get offended."
However the Council on the Ageing Australia is backing the premier's call as a sensible, measured approach.
"We know that older people and people with underlying health conditions are at greater risk of serious illness because of COVID-19, which means they must limit interactions which could bring them into contact with the virus. It's not worth the risk to ignore this advice," says Chief Executive Ian Yates.
However, this did not mean older Australians should shut themselves in their homes and not go outside at all.
"Exercise and fresh air are critical to keeping people healthy, and to mental health and wellbeing," Mr Yates said.
Australian Associated Press
