Exploring the Intersection of Public Health and Project Management: Insights, Trends, Gaps, and Future Directions—A Narrative Review of Leading Project Management Journals

Abstract

As public health initiatives increasingly adopt project-based structures to address complex societal challenges, there remains limited understanding of how project management practices are applied within this domain. This narrative literature review explores how public health has been represented and managed in the project management research field by analyzing 11 peer-reviewed studies from three leading project management journals: International Journal of Project Management, Project Management Journal, and International Journal of Managing Projects in Business. Drawing on SANRA guidelines to ensure methodological rigor, the review identifies key themes across selected studies, including stakeholder engagement, systems integration, and context-specific adaptation. Findings reveal that while project management approaches—such as change management, iterative planning, and action research—are increasingly used in health-related contexts, they often lack alignment with public health theory, long-term sustainability strategies, and sociopolitical considerations. The review highlights substantial gaps, including the minimal involvement of public health professionals, limited use of interdisciplinary frameworks, and insufficient evaluation of scalability and sustainability outcomes. By mapping current trends, exposing conceptual and methodological shortcomings, and outlining directions for future research, this review provides a foundation for strengthening the integration of project management practices in advancing sustainable and scalable public health interventions.