General practitioners' willingness and perceived barriers and facilitators to 'prescribing' potassium-enriched salt in China: an explanatory sequential mixed methods study.
9 affiliations
- 1School of Public Health, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
- 2Department of General Practice, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
- 3The George Institute for Global Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, UNSW, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- 4School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, England, UK.
- 5School of Public Health, Nanchang University, Nanchang, People's Republic of China.
- 6Jiangxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Disease Prevention and Public Health, Nanchang University, Nanchang, People's Republic of China.
- 7Center for Endemic Disease Control, Chinese Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
- 8National Health Commission Key Laboratory in Etiology and Epidemiology, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
- 9Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Human Health, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
Abstract
Introduction
Replacing regular salt with potassium-enriched salt has been identified as a promising strategy to reduce blood pressure and prevent cardiovascular diseases. However, its implementation in clinical practice remains limited. To address this implementation gap, this study aimed to examine general practitioners' (GPs) self-reported awareness, perceptions, personal use and willingness to 'prescribe' potassium-enriched salt and to identify perceived barriers and facilitators to its future implementation in routine primary care.Methods
This explanatory sequential mixed methods study combined a cross-sectional survey of GPs across mainland China with semi-structured qualitative interviews with GPs and patients.Key results
A total of 7134 survey responses were received, of which 7116 were included in the quantitative analysis after 18 internally inconsistent responses were excluded. The qualitative phase included 51 participants (19 GPs and 32 patients). Among the 7116 GPs included in the quantitative analysis, 82.6% reported having heard of potassium-enriched salt, 48.6% reported currently using it, 78.7% perceived it to be safe and 79.5% expressed willingness to 'prescribe' it. Among those unwilling to 'prescribe' it (n=1456), the most frequently reported reason was perceived low patient awareness (44.7%). Qualitative findings indicated that willingness was influenced by uncertainty about appropriate use, concerns about potential safety risks, the lack of clinical guidelines and perceived gaps in understanding of long-term benefits and risks. Consumer adoption was influenced by taste preferences, cost and limited awareness of potential health benefits. Strong GP-patient trust emerged as a key facilitator.Conclusions
This study highlights the potential role of GPs in recommending potassium-enriched salt. Future implementation will require addressing gaps in awareness and understanding, providing formal training and developing standardised guidelines to support safer and more consistent implementation in routine primary care.
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BibTeX
@article{peng2026general,
title = {{General practitioners' willingness and perceived barriers and facilitators to 'prescribing' potassium-enriched salt in China: an explanatory sequential mixed methods study.}},
author = {Shuangjie Peng and Yuze Xin and Rui Jiang and Kathy Trieu and Katrina Kissock and Bruce Neal and Xuejun Yin and Yongchen Wang and Maoyi Tian},
journal = {BMJ public health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1136/bmjph-2026-005169},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42877676},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - General practitioners' willingness and perceived barriers and facilitators to 'prescribing' potassium-enriched salt in China: an explanatory sequential mixed methods study.
AU - Shuangjie Peng
AU - Yuze Xin
AU - Rui Jiang
AU - Kathy Trieu
AU - Katrina Kissock
AU - Bruce Neal
AU - Xuejun Yin
AU - Yongchen Wang
AU - Maoyi Tian
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/14
JO - BMJ public health
DO - 10.1136/bmjph-2026-005169
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42877676
AB - Introduction Replacing regular salt with potassium-enriched salt has been identified as a promising strategy to reduce blood pressure and prevent cardiovascular diseases. However, its implementation in clinical practice remains limited. To address this implementation gap, this study aimed to examine general practitioners' (GPs) self-reported awareness, perceptions, personal use and willingness to 'prescribe' potassium-enriched salt and to identify perceived barriers and facilitators to its future implementation in routine primary care.Methods This explanatory sequential mixed methods study combined a cross-sectional survey of GPs across mainland China with semi-structured qualitative interviews with GPs and patients.Key results A total of 7134 survey responses were received, of which 7116 were included in the quantitative analysis after 18 internally inconsistent responses were excluded. The qualitative phase included 51 participants (19 GPs and 32 patients). Among the 7116 GPs included in the quantitative analysis, 82.6% reported having heard of potassium-enriched salt, 48.6% reported currently using it, 78.7% perceived it to be safe and 79.5% expressed willingness to 'prescribe' it. Among those unwilling to 'prescribe' it (n=1456), the most frequently reported reason was perceived low patient awareness (44.7%). Qualitative findings indicated that willingness was influenced by uncertainty about appropriate use, concerns about potential safety risks, the lack of clinical guidelines and perceived gaps in understanding of long-term benefits and risks. Consumer adoption was influenced by taste preferences, cost and limited awareness of potential health benefits. Strong GP-patient trust emerged as a key facilitator.Conclusions This study highlights the potential role of GPs in recommending potassium-enriched salt. Future implementation will require addressing gaps in awareness and understanding, providing formal training and developing standardised guidelines to support safer and more consistent implementation in routine primary care.
SN - 2753-4294
ER -