License: Nurse Practitioner

MS Board of Nursing external site

713 Pear Orchard Road

Plaza II Suite 300

Ridgeland, MS 39157

(601) 957-6300

Related Terms and Definitions: Board: The Mississippi Board of Nursing. Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN): Any person who holds certification and is currently licensed to practice in Mississippi or currently licensed to practice under the Nurse Licensure Compact with a multistate licensure privilege to practice in Mississippi as a certified nurse midwife (CNM), certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) or certified registered nurse practitioner (CNP). Certified nurse practitioners include acute, adult, pediatric, geriatric, family, psych-mental health, neonatal, and women's health. Collaborating Physician: A physician or dentist who has an unrestricted license to practice in the state of Mississippi and has a compatible practice or practice site as the APRN. Formal Collaborative Agreement: An agreement between the APRN and the collaborating physician which designates specific practice sites. Practice Site: The designated physical location in Mississippi which is the usual practice location as reported to the Board where the Board can conduct a site visit to evaluate the delivery of care by a licensee and compliance with laws and regulations regarding delivery of care by a licensee. This shall not include the patient's home. State Certification: The privilege to practice, as defined by MS Code Ann. §73-15-5, issued to APRNs to practice in Mississippi to the full scope of education, training, and certification. Certification Requirements: A. Initial Mississippi Certification. Prior to Board certification allowing the RN to practice as an APRN, the RN must: 1) Be currently licensed as a RN in Mississippi. 2) Comply with criminal background checks and fingerprinting requirements in accordance with Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-15-19 (1). 3) Submit completed Board application via the online license management system. 4) Pay required nonrefundable application fee upon submission of application to the Board. 5) Submit official transcript of graduation from: (a) An accredited master’s degree or higher program with a major in nursing, nurse anesthesia, or nurse midwifery. (b) An accredited educational program for APRNs if applicant graduated from an APRN program and was nationally certified as an APRN prior to December 31, 1993. 6) Submit official evidence of graduation from a master’s degree or higher accredited program in one of the four recognized advanced practice roles in which clinical experience has occurred. APRN applicants graduating from an APRN program after December 31, 1998, will be required to submit official evidence of graduation from a graduate program with a concentration in the applicant’s respective advanced practice nursing specialty. 7) Submit to the Board proof of completion of monitored practice hours by a licensed physician, licensed dentist, and/or certified APRN who has had a minimum of three (3) years active practice experience. (a) Applicants with less than one (1) year (2,000 hours) of experience working as an RN prior to completion of an accredited APRN education program must complete two-thousand (2,000) hours of monitored clinical practice. (b) Applicants with one (1) year (2,000 hours) or greater experience working as an RN prior to completion of an accredited APRN education program must complete one-thousand (1,000) hours of monitored clinical practice. (c) Clinical hours earned during an accredited APRN educational program can be applied to the monitored clinical practice hour requirement, provided that national certification is obtained in the specialty area within two years of the date of program completion. (d) 30 Miss. Admin. Code Pt. 2840, R. 1.2 (A) (7) shall become effective January 01st, 2018. 8) Submit current national certification as an APRN in a designated area of practice by a national certification organization recognized by the Board. (a) The Board retains the right to refuse to recognize a national accreditation organization. (b) The Board shall state sufficient grounds for refusing to recognize a national accreditation organization. 9) Submit required formal collaborative agreement to the Board prior to beginning practice. 10) An individual can obtain an APRN privilege to practice without having a formal collaborative agreement; however, in order to begin practice, the formal collaborative agreement must be submitted to the Board. Changes in status: 1) Relationship with collaborating physician/dentist: The APRN shall notify the Board immediately regarding changes in the collaborative relationship with a licensed physician/dentist. (a) In the event the collaborative physician/dentist is unable to continue his/her role as collaborative physician/dentist, the APRN may be allowed to continue to practice for a 90-day grace period while the APRN attempts to secure a primary collaborative physician. The Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure or its designee will serve as the APRN’s collaborative physician/dentist with the agreement of the Mississippi Board of Nursing. (b) If a collaborative physician/dentist has not been secured at the end of the 90-day grace period, an additional 90-day extension may be granted by mutual agreement of the executive committee of the Mississippi Board of Nursing and the executive committee of the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure. During this additional 90-day extension, the above described practice agreement will continue. 2) Practice site: Changes or additions regarding practice sites shall be submitted with a fee to the Board by the APRN on forms supplied by the Board. The APRN may not practice at a site prior to approval by the Board. 3) Formal collaborative agreement guidelines: Revisions of formal collaborative agreement shall be submitted with a fee to the Board prior to implementation.