PONE-D-21-02599

Predictors of ambulance transport to first health facility among injured patients in Southern Sri Lanka

PLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Reynolds,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

I apologize for the delay and any inconvenience it may have caused. It was indeed a very difficult task to find reviewers. Finally, I got two reviews. Reviewer 2 is a very proficient expert of the "International Committe of the Red Cross".

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We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

Hans-Peter Simmen, M.D., Professor of Surgery

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: Partly

Reviewer #2: Partly

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: N/A

Reviewer #2: Yes

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3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: The article is written in appropriate English but the scientific conclusions are not sufficient. An observational study of prehospital care of only 405 patients in an tertiary care hospital is difficultly representative in numbers and quality.

Reviewer #2: Comments to the Author:

Things to be considered before publishing:

• The paper does not provide information about nbrs of patients who did not want to participate

• The missing (n=405 vs n=400) 5 patients from whom a location could not be determined should just be mentioned for completeness

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes: Dr. Thomas Wilp, Ph.D., MPH, MBA, MDM, M.A.

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Attachments

Attachment

Submitted filename: PONE-D-21-02599_PLOS_REVIEW.docx

Predictors of ambulance transport to first health facility among injured patients in Southern Sri Lanka

PONE-D-21-02599R1

Dear Dr. Reynolds,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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Kind regards,

Hans-Peter Simmen, M.D., Professor of Surgery

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Reviewers' comments: