MSN students witness Mississippi Board of Nursing hearings, gain valuable experience

Contact: Marianne Todd

MERIDIAN, Miss.—Mississippi State University-Meridian Master of Science in Nursing students received a dose of experiential learning recently when they observed Mississippi Board of Nursing disciplinary hearings in Jackson.

“They told us when we left that we never want to find ourselves there,” said student Logan Stirewalt of Ackerman. “I know I don’t.”

In all, 36 MSN students witnessed two registered nurses defend their licensure after misconduct.

This is where lessons hit hard, said MSN Program Director Kayla Carr.

“Nursing is fast paced, it’s difficult, it’s dangerous, and inevitably people make mistakes no matter how safe we are,” Carr said. “But the culture of nursing is to protect the public, to be as non-punitive as possible, so that people will be transparent when they do make mistakes.”

Patient safety is paramount to human error, Carr said, and so the Board of Nursing encourages disclosure and rehabilitative action over punishment.

“If I give a wrong medication to a patient, and I know that I’m going to lose my license, I won’t tell anyone,” Carr said. “If I can disclose it, we keep the patient safe first and then correct my actions. We call this a ‘culture of safety.’”

MSU Dean of the School of Nursing Mary Stewart, who served on the BON from 2018 to 2025, said licensure is a serious commitment.

“Seeing the Board of Nursing in action helps our students gain a deeper understanding of what’s at stake when licensees fail to uphold professional standards,” she said.

Stirewalt said the lesson was well noted.

“You have people’s lives in your hands every single day,” he said. “That comes with a tremendous amount of responsibility.”

For more information about MSU-Meridian’s MSN program, visit www.nursing.msstate.edu.

Mississippi State University is taking care of what matters. Learn more at www.msstate.edu.