Mississippi guides RN moderate sedation through a Board of Nursing position statement — “a scope of practice determination made by the Board, as to whether performance of an action by a licensed nurse is within acceptable standards” (p. 1). Its background says “Optimal anesthesia care is best provided by qualified anesthesiologists and certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNA)” (p. 1) but “acknowledges the demand in the practice setting necessitating that registered nurses that are non-CRNAs provide IV moderate sedation” (p. 1). The second of its conditions puts a documented education-and-competence mechanism on the healthcare facility (p. 2).
Mississippi at a glance
| Board | Mississippi Board of Nursing |
| Document | Position Statement, “Administration and Management of Intravenous (IV) Moderate Sedation” — a five-page PDF, with a 12/2017 amendment appended on p. 5. |
| Rule it applies | No Board rule or regulation number is cited; the authority named is “Mississippi Code of 1972, Annotated, Title 73, Chapter 15” (p. 1). |
| Status | A position statement — one of the Board’s “administrative and educational tools” (p. 1). Whether it carries the force of law is not stated. Its scope lines are categorical — each begins “It is not within the scope of practice of the registered nurse” (p. 2) — and its conditions mix “must” and “shall” with “should” (pp. 2–4). |
| Dates | “Approved: 6/20/1991”; last reviewed 4/11/2025; last revised 12/9/2016; the 4/3/2009 and 7/24/2009 revisions are listed as rescinded (pp. 1, 5); a 12/2017 amendment is appended (p. 5). No effective date or review cycle is stated. |
| Who it covers | Non-CRNA registered nurses providing IV moderate sedation (p. 1) — the registered nurse “who is not a qualified anesthesia provider” (p. 2) — whether giving the drug or only monitoring the patient (p. 3). |
| Who it does not cover | In capitals, it does not apply to administering agents for “anxiolysis/analgesia/pain management”; “in an emergency for rapid sequence intubation when a physician or CRNA is immediately present and selects the orders and agent”; or “to intubated mechanically ventilated patients in critical care settings” (p. 4). LPNs are not mentioned. |
| Settings the document names | It does not list practice settings; the only setting types named are critical care settings (p. 4, in the exclusion above) and “the emergency setting” in the 12/2017 amendment (p. 5). |
| Re-verification interval | None stated. Documentation of education and competence is required “on an ongoing basis” (p. 2), and the RN takes part only if “Competency is maintained” (p. 4); no interval is named. |
| Where the record lives | The facility’s education mechanism (the block quote below, p. 2), and the institution’s written policy and procedure, which must address documentation and monitoring of physiologic measurements (pp. 3–4). |
| CE hours | Not stated — no contact-hour count, no renewal-CE requirement. Preparation “must be beyond the nurse’s basic nursing education” (p. 2) and includes “competency in airway management resuscitation (i.e., ACLS, PCLS)” (p. 3); “PCLS” is the document’s own abbreviation. |
What the Mississippi Board of Nursing says
The numbered conditions for a non-CRNA registered nurse to administer IV moderate sedation (pp. 2–4) — after state law and institutional policy allowing it, and the education mechanism quoted below — paraphrased:
- Monitoring, drug-administration and emergency protocols developed in accordance with accepted standards of anesthesia practice (p. 3).
- “a medical order from a qualified anesthesia provider, attending physician, or CRNA” (p. 3), who “should be physically present and immediately available to respond in the event of an emergency” (p. 3).
- Whether or not the RN gives the medication, the RN monitors and assesses the patient throughout the procedure, and “shall have no other responsibilities during the procedure” (p. 3).
- All necessary resources available, and “The patient must be adequately monitored according to currently recognized standards of practice” (p. 3).
- The institution, with physicians and other appropriate departmental personnel, determines the agents and dosages, which “should be clearly intended for maintaining the patient in a conscious state” (p. 4).
The condition this page is about:
“The healthcare facility has in place an education mechanism for the registered nurse that includes documentation of education and competence necessary for the performance of this function on an ongoing basis.”
Mississippi Board of Nursing — Position Statement, Administration and Management of Intravenous (IV) Moderate Sedation (PDF, last reviewed 4/11/2025, p. 2)
That preparation “must be beyond the nurse’s basic nursing education” (p. 2), and the content list is marked as not exhaustive: anatomy, physiology, pharmacology and arrhythmia recognition; assessment of total patient care during sedation and recovery, with physiologic measurements that “should include, but not limited to respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, cardiac rate and rhythm, and patient’s level of consciousness” (pp. 2–3); the complications of each agent used; interpretation of physiological responses and initiation of interventions; and the RN’s “responsibility and liability in the event of an untoward reaction or life-threatening complication” (p. 3).
Lines the statement draws
Three of its scope lines are categorical. It is not within the scope of the registered nurse who is not a qualified anesthesia provider to administer or manage deep sedation or general anesthesia, or “to administer anesthetic agents (such as Propofol, Ketamine, Etomidate, or Fospropofol)” — agents that “should be administered only by persons trained and educated in the administration of general anesthesia” — and “procedural monitoring of a person that has received an anesthetic agent by another licensed professional” is outside the registered nurse’s scope (p. 2). Two things are left to the facility: the Board “does not maintain a listing of specific medications acceptable for administration by registered nurses” (p. 4); the nurse and facility must determine which medication is appropriate; and the appended 12/2017 amendment defines “Emergency” as “the threat of the loss of life, limb, or vision” and makes it “within the scope of practice of the RN in the emergency setting as defined herein to administer, manage, and monitor sedation” under the employing organization’s education, training, policy and procedure (p. 5).
What a Mississippi facility should be able to show
Three records a Mississippi facility should be able to produce:
- Written policy and procedure — the institution “must have written policy and procedure which address” (p. 3) the maximum initial dose and agent an RN may give for moderate sedation; emergency cart, resuscitation personnel, defibrillator and supplemental oxygen “immediately accessible when IV moderate sedation is administered” (p. 3); post-administration and recovery monitoring; continual IV access; documentation and monitoring of physiologic measurements; and a qualified professional capable of managing complications, present in the facility until the patient is stable (pp. 3–4).
- Per-nurse documentation of education for every RN who administers or monitors IV moderate sedation — preparation beyond basic nursing education covering the content areas above (pp. 2–3).
- Per-nurse evidence of ongoing competence, documented on an ongoing basis and maintained (pp. 2, 4), on an interval your own policy names — the statement sets none.
The CSRN™ course — 10 CE contact hours developed and delivered by Capt. M. Ron Eslinger, CRNA, with module exams, case studies and a certificate ID your credentialing office can verify — is built to be records 2 and 3 on that list. Facility seats and roster tracking →
Questions Mississippi facilities ask
Does Mississippi set a renewal interval for sedation competency?
No. It asks for documentation on an ongoing basis (p. 2) and says it is “incumbent upon the RN to participate in this procedure only if” competency is maintained, necessary resources are immediately available and the procedure is according to accepted standards of practice (p. 4). It names no interval; the one you write into your policy is your own.
Does Mississippi require the CSRN™ course specifically?
No. The statement requires no particular moderate-sedation course, and no state mandates this specific one. It asks the healthcare facility for an education mechanism with documentation of education and competence beyond basic nursing education (p. 2) and lists non-exhaustive content areas (pp. 2–3), naming no provider and no hour count. CSRN™ is designed to serve as that evidence.
Can a Mississippi RN give propofol — or monitor a patient who has had it?
No. Administering anesthetic agents such as propofol, and monitoring a patient who has received one from another licensed professional, are not within the scope of practice of the registered nurse who is not a qualified anesthesia provider (p. 2). Its three exclusions say nothing further about anesthetic agents (p. 4); the 12/2017 amendment addresses “sedation” in an emergency (p. 5), not anesthetic agents.
Compliance note (last reviewed September 2026): This page is educational information about the Mississippi Board of Nursing position statement Administration and Management of Intravenous (IV) Moderate Sedation, not legal advice or a compliance determination. Every quotation was checked word-for-word against the Board’s PDF (last reviewed 4/11/2025) on 2026-09-01; page numbers refer to that five-page PDF. Confirm the current version on the Board’s website and your own facility policy before relying on this summary. No state mandates this specific course.