Maine ranks among top 10 states for nurses, new study says

WalletHub map of U.S. states showing Maine as No 10

Source / WalletHub

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By Staff

When it comes to job opportunities and working conditions for nurses, Maine places No. 10 in a new WalletHub ranking of 50 states released Wednesday.

States were judged across 22 metrics for "opportunity and competition," which takes into account the monthly average starting salary for nurses, health care facilities per capita, the quality of nursing schools and "work environment."

The latter category factors in the ratio of nurses to hospital beds, mandatory overtime restrictions, the regulatory environment for nurse practitioners and the quality of a state's public hospital system.

At No. 10, Maine was well ahead of its New England peers; Vermont was near the bottom at No. 48.

The Pine Tree State was found to be No. 8 for "work environment" and No. 17 for "opportunity and competition."

At the other end of the spectrum, however, Maine was found to be among the five states with the lowest annual nursing salary, along with Rhode Island, Hawaii, Maryland and Vermont, though there were no details about salary levels or the cost of living in those states.

WalletHub said it took stock of the industry to help registered nurses, particularly new graduates, pick a place to live and work that will bring success in a sector with some of the lowest unemployment rates in the country.

"In fact," the study's authors note, "the industry is expected to grow at nearly double the rate of the average occupation through 2029.

The scoreboard was released less than a week after nurses at Maine Medical Center voted to form a union in a move welcomed by Gov. Janet Mills.

"Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, our dedicated health care professionals have worked around the clock to save lives," she said in an emailed statement last week. "They serve our state with acts of heroism every day and, like all working people, deserve the right and ability to advocate to improve their lives and livelihoods.

“I congratulate the nurses at Maine Medical Center on their decisive vote to unionize and expect the management of Maine Medical Center to respect that decision so both sides can begin a productive contract negotiation.”