Subtheme	Study	Direct participant data	Author description of data
Advice and information from health professionals	Campbell 2001	"So I go to the doctor and all he just simply done was put his hand on my knee, he said "move your leg…you are getting old you've got rheumatism." You see that was it I didn't take any more notice of it [the knee pain]." p.135. "She [the physiotherapist] said the kneecap is out, so she taped it up and pushed it back…So now if it starts aching, that's what I do. I tape it up and push it back to where it should be." p.136.	As the model described in fig 1 of Campbell 2001 suggests, these ideas (about exercise interventions) were sometimes shaped by people's previous experiences of health care. p.135.
	Hendry 2006	"My doctor told me to keep exercising and not to stop." p.561. "…they [hospital doctors] said, 'the walking's agitating you, your joints, so stop it'." "The physiotherapist told me to exercise." p.561. "My doctor showed me how to do quads exercises to strengthen the muscles." "My doctor gave me a referral to the gym." p.561. "I was given advice about exercise at the gym." p.561. "At the hospital they told me I shouldn't overdo exercise, I should look after my knees." p.561. "He told me to take painkillers and keep my knees moving but he didn't advise any particular kind of exercise." p.561. "I haven't had any advice about exercising and what exercises to do." p.561. "Doctors could give you more encouragement to exercise; I had to get the referral form from the gym myself and ask him to sign it." p.561. "I think they would have told me in the clinic if I should be exercising and what exercises to do." p.561. This could be more relevant in/similar to 'influence of program supervisors in terms of individual instruction and the 'knowledge' is a secondary part of this; currently quoted in text for this themes: "…I had to stick rigidly to what he had said, the weights that he had specified…the idea was to stretch it that little bit further than I normally would do in order to support the joint more…but too much would…cause more damage and not enough wouldn't do any good…I was quite impressed actually by his knowledge…and I did exactly what he said and I did notice an improvement, a definite improvement." p.563.	Advice from health professionals was mainly in favour of exercise and consisted of encouragement to exercise, advice about specific exercises and referral to a gym. Sometimes the advice was vague or absent. p.561. Occasionally exercise was discouraged. p.561. The expert advice and supervision available in gyms or from physiotherapists was valued. p.563.
	Hinman 2016	"I was a bit sceptical at first and when the exercises came I thought 'hang on, this has got nothing to do with the knee as far as I understand' being ignorant, you know. Now I sort of feel that 'hang on, yeah there is a difference' because the work has paid off." p.486.	All 3 groups of participants referred to the importance of giving and receiving information. p.483.
	Hurley 2010	"…[participants GP] never said anything, that's why I have always thought it's not worth bothering about. He's not bothered so I am not bothered…" p.5. "…I learned so much from [the physiotherapist]…I learnt about pain management…" p.7. "…It helped me understand arthritis much better…" p.7. "…I class it as spring cleaning my mind…" p.7. "…[helped understand] how to cope with pain…that exercise does help ease the pain and helps your mobility…" p.7.	Our inclusion criteria meant all participants had consulted their GP about knee pain. People were often told the problem was due to wear and tear and getting old. Few could remember receiving information or advice, and they perceived knee pain was considered a benign condition that did not have a high priority, which confirmed their own beliefs and attitudes. No‐one had been offered a self‐management programme. Management was seen as ineffectual, and consequently few were regularly consulting their GP despite ongoing problems. p.3. Management usually involved people being offered palliative medication. p.3. Receiving information and practical advice about what (not) to do, and the opportunity to discuss things that concerned and confused them with a healthcare professional, helped people appreciate their problems and what they could do to address these. In particular, they learned about the role of inactivity and excess bodyweight in development of knee pain, and how exercise and losing weight could control symptoms. p.8.
	Petursdottir 2010	"He encourages me in every way." p.1021. "They have not done it [encouraged exercising]." p.1021. "They [the physicians] are positive if you ask [for a referral to a physical therapist], but you have to ask." p.1021. "Now I think I handle it more wisely. I know better because I've been fortunate to get good instruction." p.1021. "There are many 60 year‐olds who don't use computers to get information. And these are the people with arthritis! I think it is much easier to get information to the younger people. We use the Internet." p.1020.	The encouragement of physicians to exercise was very important to some of the participants. However, this encouragement (i.e. whether physicians emphasised exercise) varied. Whether physicians referred their patients to physical therapists also varied. p.1021. Participants' knowledge of both general health and OA was of high importance. Most of the participants had experienced being educated by their physical therapists. Some participants wondered how to get such information to the public. p.1020.
	Stone 2015	"My doctor told me to go on a [recumbent] bicycle for 20 minutes a day, or whatever was easiest for me. So she tells me to pick up my hands [to the sky], which I can't do because of arthritis in my back. So then she tells me to pick up my legs or do sit ups…But I can't do those either! I'm so confused. I just find it easier to do nothing. (P3)." p.12. "I was never prescribed exercise. My family doctor and rheumatologist have never even mentioned it. If my doctors don't think it's important, why should I? (P1)." p.12. "When I was first diagnosed, I didn't know what to think. I knew it wasn't good, but I didn't know how bad it was going to be. After a couple of years, the pain was too much to bear and I thought, that's it…my life is over. And no one warned me…I didn't even know what to do…exercise was the farthest thing from my mind." p.6. Many participants echoed, "If my doctor tells me to [exercise], then I will" (P1, P4, P5, P6, P7, P8, P10, P11, P12). p.14. 1 participant noted, "If [my doctor] told me what to do and how to do it, I'd be at the gym right now" (P6). p.14.	Participants were knowledgeable of the benefits that physical activity can have for the general population; however, many were unaware of specific OA‐related benefits and unsure of what activities would provide optimal self‐management. Furthermore, participants noted that physicians often provided them with counteradvice or did not offer any recommendations. This created further confusion about physical activity and the potential benefits for OA. p.12. Much like the quotations above, many participants held the perspective of being inadequately educated about exercise by their healthcare providers, and rarely having an open dialogue regarding prescribing exercise or physiotherapies (or both). This lack of communication regarding exercise and physical activity was compounded with a participant perspective of having inadequate knowledge/communication regarding their OA diagnosis in general. This increased confusion often related to their disease and alternative treatment options. p.12. All participants spoke about the instrumental role of healthcare providers in influencing and encouraging physical activity. Participants expressed that if their physician advocated exercise, they would be eager to adopt it. p.14. In addition, participants desired more knowledge and specific guidance related to physical activity. p.14.