In honor of Nurses Week, this month’s State Spotlight takes us to Maryland — the home of the Clara Barton National Historic site, which celebrates the life of the iconic nursing legend and American Red Cross founder.
Travel Nursing in Maryland
Maryland is an amazing state for Travel Nursing. There are many wonderful facilities here and the geographic location gives Travelers a lot of variety and endless opportunities for adventure throughout the state and region.
The small but mighty state is home to nearly 70 hospitals, including the famous Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, which U.S. News & World Report ranked as the #1 hospital in Maryland and #4 on its 2016/2017 Best Hospitals Honor Roll. Rounding out the top five hospitals in Maryland are: University of Maryland Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, Sinai Hospital of Baltimore, and MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center.
In 2017, U.S. News & World Report ranked Maryland #8 on their first-ever “Best States” list, based on criteria including economy, education, government, health care, crime & corrections, infrastructure, and opportunity. Maryland has one of the best state economies in the nation and remains one of only 11 U.S. states with a AAA bond rating. When it comes to cost of living, Maryland has a unique advantage in that it’s located so close to Washington D.C., yet its residents don’t have the added expense of actually living in the nation’s capital.
As for licensing, Maryland is not a walk through state but it is a compact state and a NURSYS state. Temporary licenses generally come through in approximately two to three days and are good for 90 days. Click here for more info on licensing in Maryland.
To Do & See in Maryland
There are plenty of great states out there for Travel Nurses seeking variety, but Maryland may take the proverbial crab cake when it comes to geographical diversity!
In fact, Maryland has been dubbed “Little America” or “America in Miniature” since it contains just about every terrain and so many of the natural features found in the U.S. In The Old Line State you can enjoy raging rivers, lovely lakes, stunning seashores, intriguing islands, beautiful bays, fabulous forests, captivating cliffs, majestic mountains, cool caves, wonderful waterfalls, and wetlands brimming with wildlife. You’ll also find that Maryland also has everything from bustling cities to serene small towns to classic farmland areas.
Some of Maryland’s most revered natural attractions include The Chesapeake Bay, a 40-mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail, The Blackwater National Refuge, Rocks State Park (which also boasts some great history), Assateague State Park (located on a barrier island — and there are roving wild ponies there!), Gilpin’s Fall, Sugarloaf Mountain, Cranesville Swamp Nature Sanctuary, Belt Woods, Battle Creek Cypress Swamp, and many more beautiful spots.
While jousting is the official sport of the state of Maryland, sports fans can get down with Baltimore Ravens football and Baltimore Orioles baseball, as well as the Baltimore Blast indoor soccer team and several other professional sports franchises. And, of course, the third Saturday each May Baltimore hosts The Preakness Stakes horse race!
The National Aquarium in Baltimore is a must-see, with 20,000 aquatic animals in amazingly cool, award-winning habitats. Exhibits include cool experiences like the Amazon River Forest, Atlantic Coral Reef, Dolphin Discovery, Shark Alley, and many, many more.
And, speaking of seeing seafood, Maryland is famously known for its ample supply of the nation’s most perfect crab cakes. Other iconic area eats include softshell crab, Smith Island Cake, Thrasher’s Fries, oysters, Utz Crab Chips, cream of crab soup, crab dip, snowballs, and fresh fruit from Maryland’s many orchards and farms. Wash it all down with a National Bohemian Beer, or “Natty Boh” as the locals say, and you’ll be living like a true Marylander!
As mentioned above, if you’re a nurse and a history buff you may want to check out the Clara Barton National Historic Site, where the legendary nurse welcomed the infirm, launched the American Red Cross, and lived until her death in 1912. There’s a ton of other cool historical sites to take in here in The Old Line State, like Historic Annapolis, Fort McHenry, Antietam National Battlefield, Fort Washington Park (which was, for several decades, the only defensive fort that protected D.C.), Historic St. Mary’s City, the B&O Railroad Museum, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center, and the Edgar Allen Poe House & Museum.
Other attractions in this great state you won’t want to miss include the Ocean City Boardwalk, the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Park, and the Baltimore Harbor.
Oh yeah, and there’s a little place called Washington D.C. right next door. I’m told they have a sight or two to see … You know, like the White House, Washington Monument, National Gallery of Art, Newseum, Smithsonian Institution, Holocaust Memorial Museum, Capitol Building, National Mall, Lincoln Memorial, National Museum of African American History and Culture, National Air and Space Museum, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, National Portrait Gallery, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and TONS more.
Maryland Fast Facts
State Nickname: The Old Line State or The Free State
Capital: Annapolis
Largest City: Baltimore
National Parks, Historic Sites, and Wildlife Refuges: 10
State Parks: 40
State Motto: “Strong Deeds, Gentle Words”
State Flower: Black-eyed Susan
State bird: Baltimore Oriole
Maryland is the seventh state and was one of the 13 original colonies.
Annapolis, Maryland is known as the sailing capital of the world. Fitting, as it once served as the Capital of the United States and in the 17th Century was known as the “Athens of America.”
The Maryland State House is the United States’ oldest state capitol that’s still in continuous legislative use.
In 1901, Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins School of Medicine employed the first female professor of medicine.
The United States Naval Academy was founded in Annapolis in 1845.
There’s a town in Maryland named Chevy Chase — but it has nothing to do with the SNL funnyman by the same name.
Famous Marylanders include Babe Ruth, Cal Ripken Jr., John Waters, Edgar Allen Poe, Harriet Tubman, David Hasselhoff, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Taraji P. Henson, Joan Jett, Tori Amos, Philip Glass, Upton Sinclair, Zora Neale Hurston, Tom Clancy, Ben Carson, Nancy Pelosi, and Frederick Douglass.
Ouija Boards and automatic elevators were invented in Maryland. The state also produced the nation’s first umbrellas and was home to its first YMCA.
Maryland was one of two states to give up some of its land for the creation of Washington D.C. (The other was Virginia.)
Forests cover 43% of Maryland’s land surface.
Baltimore’s Mount Clare Station, built in 1830, was the nation’s first railroad station.