Put a name to the care
How do I check the person treating me?
Ask for a full name, licence type and licence number. A licence is permission to practise. Look up the person who will check your health and write any prescription, even if the website has a different name.
Find the right Maryland register
Where do doctors and physician assistants appear?
The Maryland Board of Physicians provides a free public search for doctors and physician assistants, or PAs.
Use the name or licence number supplied. Compare the result with the details you were given, then read the record rather than stopping at a matching name.
Open Maryland's practitioner searchWhat if the person is a nurse practitioner?
Nurse practitioners, often called NPs, have their Maryland records with the Board of Nursing instead.
The Board of Nursing website links to its licence and certification lookup.
Find the nursing board's licence lookup Understand who can treat and prescribeWhat does the record prove?
You can use a medical board record to check a doctor's current licence status and look for public penalties. A penalty is a formal board decision, not just a complaint. A record without public penalties cannot establish the doctor's level of skill.
As of September 28, 2026, Maryland doctors' public profiles must show recent board penalties and certain details about training and the kind of medicine they practise.
Some details come from the doctor. A charge filed by the board is an allegation it is pursuing, not a final decision that the doctor did something wrong.
Get any mismatch explained before you make plans. Save the name and licence details with your visit notes.