Constructing an ecosystem matrix for continuing education from a multi-industry perspective and its implications for public health

Against the backdrop of the continuous strengthening of public health system capacity, continuing education has become a critical pathway for enhancing the job competence and systemic response capacity of the public health workforce. However, its training models and operational mechanisms require further examination and optimization through cross-sectoral comparison. From the perspective of cross-industry transferability of continuing education experience, this study selected the sports, other service, and agricultural sectors as representative reference industries, and systematically reviewed their continuing education practices in terms of training models, instructional implementation, supporting elements, target groups, and outcome transformation. Based on an integrated analysis of literature from Chinese and international databases (CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, Web of Science, and PubMed) published during January 2018 and August 2025, together with policy documents and industry practice materials, a multi-industry continuing education ecological matrix was constructed using structured case analysis and isomorphic dimensional comparison. The analysis reveals that, despite contextual differences, the three fields share several common operational logics in continuing education, including job-oriented stratified and classified training structures, multi-actor collaborative governance, technology-enabled and flexible learning arrangements, and mechanisms linking learning to practical application. Drawing on this cross-industry evidence, the study further argues that the application of these experiences to public health continuing education should not rely on the direct replication of specific practices, but rather on institutional adaptation in key areas such as the development of stratified training systems, the operation of collaborative training platforms, the integration of digital technologies with practice-based training, and the alignment of learning evaluation with career development.