The provincial government is reporting some progress in its attempts to recruit more health care professionals.

The province a few months ago announced a number of initiatives to try to lure Newfoundlanders and Labradorians living away back home, while at the same time attracting newcomers to the health care field.

Health Minister Tom Osborne says those efforts are starting to bear fruit, although it falls far short of the exodus from health care seen in recent months.

According to Osborne, the Medical Bursary Program resulted in the recruitment of 19 professionals while the Family Practice Program resulted in 23 physicians opening or joining family practice clinics for a five-year commitment.

They also introduced a Come Home Year incentive that has resulted in 30 people who are in the process of being hired.

That’s in addition to a hiring desk set up in India to recruit graduating nurses and a partnership program to recruit medical professionals from Ireland. Because those efforts rely heavily on immigration and licensing, the province doesn’t expect to see new hires for another four to eight months, although work is underway to streamline the process without sacrificing professional standards.