Monday, July 17, 2006

MD Land Records Online

Some time ago, the Maryland Judiciary and the Maryland State Archives teamed up to provide e-access to Maryland land records. The result is MDLandRec.Net. Much of the information contained on this site is contained on the MD State Dept. of Assessments and Taxation Real Property Data Search. What makes this site different is that it provides you with full text PDF access to the original documents--deeds, deeds of trusts, etc. From the MD Judiciary homepage, select "Search Court Records" from the box on the left, and then select MDLandRec.net. You'll need to register for the service, but registration is free and simple. Once you're on the site, simply select the county (currently, you don't seem to be able to search across counties), the time period you wish to search (either 1653-1964 or Aug. 1, 1964 - Jul 6, 2006) and then search either by the book/page number or by the individual's name. The site is still under production but aims to have all records in by September of this year.

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Comparing Maryland's Hospitals

A July 11 article in the Daily Record (subscription) entitled “Web Site Gives The Lowdown On Maryland Hospitals” reported on a new publication from the Maryland Health Care Commission called The Maryland Hospital Guide. The Guide is actually composed of three separate guides, each intended for a different audience: the patient guide, the practitioners guide, and the hospital leaders guide. The patient guide helps members of the public find the best hospital for a specific medical condition. The practitioners guide helps doctors compare the performance of hospitals in Maryland, and the hospital leaders guide helps hospital executives compare their hospital's performance with other hospitals. To compare the costs for particular medical procedures at various Maryland hospitals see the pricing guide.