PONE-D-22-22781UNDERSTANDING ACTIONS TAKEN BY FEMALE FAMILY CAREGIVERS AND CHALLENGES THEY FACED IN CARING FOR OLDER PEOPLE DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BELU DISTRICT, INDONESIA: A QUALITATIVE STUDYPLOS ONE

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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Reviewer #1: N/A

Reviewer #2: N/A

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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Reviewer #1: Dear authors,

Thanks for the opportunity to review this paper. This paper presents very important findings about older people who are vulnerable to COVID-19 infection and can inform policy and programs to support this population.

Overall, the manuscript is well-written. All parts have been explained very well by the authors. The gap in knowledge is identified, which justifies the study. I have a few suggestions that hopefully help the authors for further improvement of their manuscript.

1. They need to add a brief explanation or justification about why they chose to conduct the study in Belu.

2. Data saturation: there seems to be a repetition of information about data saturation as it is mentioned in two places.

3. Did face-to-face interviews follow COVID-19 prevention protocols? If yes, please make it clear in the methods section.

4. There is a supplementary file of COREQ checklist but you haven’t mentioned it in the text, please report it stating that you follow the guideline and why.

Reviewer #2: The study explores challenges faced by female caregivers in protecting older adult family members during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings are very interesting and relevant and can be considered for publication.

Some comments to be considered by the authors:

I am wondering whether the authors can provide further explanation about why they included only female caregivers. The authors stated, “Older people in the study setting are cared for predominantly by female family members, especially their daughters, in their private homes”. Does it have something to do with culture or religion? Or something else? Also, it would be good to justify the selection of the study setting.

Do the hospitals or healthcare facilities in the study setting have specific services for older people during the COVID-19 pandemic?

It would be helpful for the readers if the authors can provide some examples of the main research questions used to explore the topic.

What are the implications of your findings for the health department or the government in the study setting? The authors mentioned intervention programs to support both female caregivers and older people. Can you propose any appropriate intervention programs that may have been implemented in other settings? Food support, nutritional supplement support, etc….

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: No

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UNDERSTANDING ACTIONS TAKEN BY FEMALE FAMILY CAREGIVERS AND CHALLENGES THEY FACED IN CARING FOR OLDER PEOPLE DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BELU DISTRICT, INDONESIA: A QUALITATIVE STUDY

PONE-D-22-22781R1

Dear Dr. Gregorius Abanit Asa,

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.

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Kind regards,

Farooq Ahmed, PhD

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE