Table 6.

Patient Quotations on a Shared Decision Making Approach

Quotation	Patient (Most Recent Treatment)
A.
“I was open to let the people with the knowledge make the biggest part of the decisions and I would just agree.”	66-y.o. female (VLPS)
Patient: “They offered me the choice of getting it operated or just letting it heal by itself. But listening to her, I decided to go with the operation. Spouse: “I think [the hand surgeon] was very fair. [The hand surgeon] provided the facts and kind of kept her own opinion hidden unless she was asked.”	67-y.o. female (VLPS)
B.
“I like to lead [medical decisions] because I consider myself more active than the average person and I like to maintain that level of activity. In other words, if I have pain I am going to complain about it if it stops me from climbing or dancing or whatever. I am not going to accept an answer of, ‘You’re getting old, expect it’. Somewhat self-directed in that I communicate how active I want to be.”	62-y.o. female (VLPS)
“I like to have a pro-active role because I’m intelligent. I have the capability to understand stuff, I’ve had a pretty good education.”	64-y.o. female (VLPS)

VLPS, volar locking plating system; y.o., year old