A Wairarapa mental health nurse crossed the line when he tried to talk two nursing students into sleeping with him, bragging about how he would be able to please them, health authorities have ruled.

The Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal, in a decision released on Tuesday, says the behaviour of the unnamed man, who was a registered nurse in the Mental Health Unit of the Wairarapa District Health Board, amounted to malpractice and professional misconduct.

The man, who had migrated to New Zealand in 2001, was acting as a role model for nursing students, but two of them complained about him in 2010.

One student, in her early 20s, told the tribunal that on a trip to the Hutt Valley to see a patient, the man had started out asking if she had a boyfriend.

He also told her he was keen to start a brothel, rubbed her leg and talked to her about kissing and sex, she said.

She also recalled other sexually explicit language and suggestions, including asking if she wanted to go to his bach with him "if she was an adventurous girl".

The student was so stressed by that she has since given up her studies.

Another student, who was a little older, said the man would try to touch her legs when they were alone. His conversation would become increasingly explicit and he would talk about prostitutes and affairs.

He once tried to kiss her in the office, said he wanted to have sex with her, and spoke about performing oral sex on her so that he would not need to rape her.

The nurse, who was dismissed following the complaints, continued to deny the charges.

However, the tribunal said it was satisfied the students were telling the truth and that it did not accept the man's denials.