Table 4.

Examples of risk/benefit analyses related to the decision to take OP medication

"Easy" Decision		"Difficult" Decision
Taking OP medication at time of interview	Not taking OP medication at time of interview	Taking OP medication at time of interview	Not taking OP medication at time of interview
Regarding her decision to take a bisphosphonate, "It might make my bones stronger,...or I might gain back some bone density" (#18)	Participant understood she was prescribed a bisphosphonate "to prevent further bone loss" (#25)	"One friend of mine was asked to take [a bisphosphonate] and she had a major allergic reaction to it and it caused some problems with her blood cells...A neighbour mentioned she'd been on [a bisphosphonate] for almost a year...and she was having some cramping problems in her toe" (#10)	"I did a bit of research and elected not to go on [bisphosphonates] because I didn't feel I wanted to accept the side effects. And I was certainly right...If you look at the side effects of [the bisphosphonate], which has now been discontinued because of jaw necrosis...they lose bone in the jaw...common sense tells one that if you have to swallow a pill and cannot lie down or bend for half an hour because if it lodges in the esophagus, it creates a great deal of damage there...and does the damage where you do not feel it until it's too late" (#24)