On a crisp Monday morning in Moncton, Nurse Practitioner Sasha Leblanc greets her first patient of the day with a warm smile that doesn’t quite mask her exhaustion. After pulling a double shift last weekend, she’s back at it, her third cup of coffee already emptied. Two years ago, she might have been the only provider available for this clinic. Today, she works alongside two recently recruited nurses from the Philippines and a family physician who relocated from Ontario last summer.
“The difference is night and day,” Leblanc tells me as we walk between examination rooms. “We’re still stretched thin, but having these additional hands means I can spend more than seven minutes with each patient. That’s what healthcare should be about.”
This scene is becoming increasingly common across New Brunswick, where healthcare recruitment efforts have yielded surprising results over the past year. According to data released by the provincial government, New Brunswick has hired more than 400 nurses and 80 physicians since early 2023, a significant achievement for a province that has historically struggled to attract and retain healthcare professionals.
Premier Blaine Higgs and Health Minister Bruce Fitch announced these figures during a press conference at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre in Moncton. The recruitment push represents one of the most substantial healthcare workforce boosts the province has seen in decades.
For communities like Bathurst and Edmundston, where hospital emergency department closures had become a dreaded regular occurrence, these new hires offer a cautious reason for optimism. Rural residents like Martin Theriault, 67, who once drove 90 minutes to receive emergency care for chest pains, feel the impact most directly.
“Last winter I sat in my truck debating if my heart attack symptoms were bad enough to make the drive to Moncton,” Theriault recounts. “No one should have to make that calculation. Now our local ER has been open consistently for three months. It makes a difference between life and death.”
The recruitment success stems from a multi-pronged approach initiated in 2022. The province increased compensation packages, streamlined licensing for internationally trained professionals, and expanded training positions at New Brunswick nursing schools and Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick. According to data from the Department of Health, roughly 30% of the newly recruited nurses are internationally educated, primarily from the Philippines, India, and Nigeria.
Dr. Yemi Adefarakan, who arrived from Nigeria last year to practice in Saint John, describes the transition as challenging but worthwhile. “The licensing process was more efficient than I expected, though cultural integration takes time,” he explains. “The community has been welcoming, but there are still barriers. Some patients are initially hesitant when they see me, but that usually changes once we start talking.”
The province has also succeeded in bringing some former New Brunswickers back home. Dr. Michelle LeBlanc returned to practice in Dieppe after working in Montreal for eight years. “The financial incentives helped, but it was really about quality of life and being closer to family,” she says. “And honestly, the healthcare system needed the help. You feel like you’re making a difference here.”
While the recruitment numbers are promising, healthcare analysts caution that retention remains equally crucial. According to the New Brunswick Nurses Union, the province has historically struggled with high turnover rates, particularly in rural areas. A 2022 report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information noted that New Brunswick lost approximately 250 nurses annually to retirement or relocation to other provinces between 2018 and 2021.
Paula Doucet, president of the New Brunswick Nurses Union, expresses measured optimism. “Four hundred new nurses is significant, but we need to address the working conditions that drive nurses away,” she tells me. “Many are still working excessive overtime and facing workplace violence. Recruitment without retention is just pouring water into a bucket with holes.”
The province’s success comes amid a nationwide healthcare staffing crisis. The Canadian Medical Association projects a shortage of 30,000 nurses and nearly 6,000 physicians across Canada by 2028 if current trends continue. New Brunswick’s recruitment strategy could serve as a potential model for other provinces facing similar challenges.
However, the influx of healthcare professionals hasn’t eliminated all access issues. Wait times for primary care remain lengthy, with nearly 59,000 New Brunswickers still on the Patient Connect NB registry waiting for a family doctor or nurse practitioner. And specialists like neurologists and psychiatrists remain in critically short supply, particularly in northern regions.
For patients like Catherine Wilson, a 43-year-old from Sussex who has been waiting 14 months for a rheumatology appointment, the improvements feel distant. “I hear about all these new doctors, but my joints are still swollen, I’m still in pain, and I’m still waiting,” she says. “Where are all these doctors working? Because I sure can’t get in to see one.”
Dr. Mark Dornan, a family physician and president of the New Brunswick Medical Society, acknowledges that distribution remains challenging. “We’re making progress, but there are still geographic disparities and specialty gaps that need addressing,” he explains. “Healthcare is complex – it’s never solved by just one approach.”
The province plans to continue its aggressive recruitment efforts through 2024, with a particular focus on mental health professionals and specialists. The Department of Health has allocated an additional $10 million specifically for recruitment and retention incentives.
As I leave Nurse Leblanc’s clinic in the afternoon, she’s reviewing charts with a new colleague. “We’re not where we need to be yet,” she admits. “But for the first time in years, I feel like we’re moving in the right direction. That counts for something.”
For a province that has long watched its healthcare system strain under demographic pressures and professional shortages, these 480 new faces represent more than just staffing statistics. They represent the possibility that when New Brunswickers need care, someone will be there to provide it – a modest expectation that, for too many, has felt out of reach for far too long.
