"Unveiling the Truth: A Movie Review of 'The Good Nurse' Film Adaptation"

I. Synopsis
"The Good Nurse" is a disturbing true story about Charles Cullen, a registered nurse who
murdered countless patients in hospitals across New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Throughout his
career, he used various medications to administer lethal doses to his victims. Charles’ actions
went unnoticed for years due to a lack of oversight and communication within the healthcare
system. The movie digs into Charles’ troubled past and the possible psychological reasons for his
crimes. With the help of Nurse Amy who befriends Charles, the chilling reality of his crimes and
the negligence within the healthcare industry that allowed him to continue his killings was
revealed.

II. Summary
The movie centers on Amy (played by Jessica Chastain), a single mother and a nurse at
an understaffed hospital. She has a heart condition that requires immediate surgery however,
she's ineligible for health insurance because she's just newly employed. Entering Charles Cullen
(played by Eddie Redmayne), a new nurse who befriends Amy. After learning about her illness,
Charles promises to support her and hide her secret. He assists her when she needs him, such as
covering for her during her medical episodes and spending time with her two kids.
When Amy's patient dies mysteriously that one death raises suspicions.
Detectives Baldwin and Braun investigated, finding anomalies in the hospital's handling of the
case. Later on, the detectives uncover that Charles Cullen has a criminal history and a history of
psychiatric hospitalization. However, his previous employers refuse to cooperate with the
investigation. The next thing was, the two detectives together with Amy briefly had a private
moment. She examined the patient records and found inappropriate administration of insulin.
However, she dismisses the detectives' suspicions regarding Cullen's involvement.
Amy's suspicions grow stronger after a second patient dies suspiciously from an insulin
overdose. Knowing about Charles’s past, she reaches out to an ex-colleague who worked with
him at his previous job. This colleague reveals that rumors circulated about Charles intentionally
harming patients. The hospital experienced numerous medical emergencies or code blues during
his employment, which declined significantly after his departure. Amy concludes that Charles is
responsible for the current deaths, secretly injecting lethal substances into IV bags. Charles used
various medications to administer lethal doses to his victims. Among the drugs he typically used
were insulin, digoxin, and epinephrine and these drugs are lethal in excessive amounts.
Charles is now fired from the hospital due to incorrect employment dates on his
application. Amy collaborates with detectives to arrest him by meeting him at a restaurant to
elicit a confession. However, Charles refuses to discuss the matter and leaves. Despite this
setback, Amy obtains information about Charle's new hospital employment that day. She also
provides police with patient data the hospital claimed to have deleted. Charles was then arrested,
and the police attempted to use the evidence to obtain a confession. After several hours, they are
still unsuccessful in making him confess and now face the prospect of releasing him.
At that moment, Amy visits the station to talk to Charles. Amy displays great kindness
towards Charles by giving him her jacket and acknowledging his loneliness. After expressing her
sympathy for his situation, Charles responds by confessing his desire to help Amy. She then asks
for his help by providing the names of those he has harmed. Amy's empathy enables her to
extract a confession from Charles. Following his confession, Charles is arrested. The film
concludes with Amy and her daughter spending time together in bed.

III. The Dilemmas Faced by Nurse Amy and The Families of the Patients

a. In the context of Nurse Amy, she encountered dilemmas that challenged her morals and
sense of duty. She may have felt a moral and ethical conflict between protecting patients
and reporting Cullen's actions, fearing consequences for herself and her career since she
only has four months to be eligible for the health insurance needed for her surgery. She
certainly faced a dilemma between loyalty to her friend Charles and the well-being of her
patients. Reporting Cullen's suspicious behavior risked damaging her relationship with
him and creating tensions with other coworkers who were unaware of his actions.
However, Nurse Amy courageously stands with the truth and the obligation to uphold
patient safety and well-being by reporting the anomalies occurring inside the hospital.

b. In the context of the families of the patients or victims, the most significant dilemma was
the loss of trust and confidence. Patients and their loved ones trusted nurses or even other
healthcare professionals to care for them while they're sick or injured. Learning that a
nurse, who is responsible for their safety, was intentionally harming them, led to intense
feelings of betrayal and anxiety. Another dilemma is that losing a loved one for the
families became even more difficult after Charles Cullen's crimes. They found out that
their family members didn't die from natural causes, but were killed on purpose by
Cullen. This made it hard for them to grieve and move on, because they knew that
someone close to them had done something so terrible.

IV. If you were given the chance and choice, will you make the same decision as the
client/family? WHY?

If I will put myself in Nurse Amy’s shoes and make decisions, I will do the same way she did
with courage and justice. Like all medical professionals, my duty and responsibility as a nurse is
to follow ethical principles that put patient health and safety first. After learning a questionable
actions or misconduct by a coworker even if he’s/ she’s a close friend of mine, I have a moral
duty to report it to the appropriate authorities to ensure patient protection and uphold the
profession's integrity. By correcting the system that’s flawed, the victims' families can seek
justice and prevent others from going through similar pain and loss in the future. I know that one
of the consequences behind my action is a strained relationship with that coworker or close
friend but for me true friendship isn't about turning a blind eye to flaws, but about confronting
them with love and honesty just like what Nurse Amy did.

V. Relevance of the Movie to Nursing Education

"The Good Nurse" movie is relevant to nursing education because it discusses ethical
challenges nurses encounter when patient well-being is at risk. It emphasizes my responsibility
as a student nurse to always prioritize patient advocacy, report wrongdoing, and maintain high
standards of care. It also illustrates the significance of patient safety in healthcare. Nursing
course cover areas like medication administration and nursing interventions which are essential
for patient safety and preventing errors. With all the exhaustion and lack of sleep, our emotions
can sometimes stir up with our judgment and interfere with our ability to provide nursing care.
As student nurse, we encounter these challenging situations that evoke strong emotions, but I
realized from the movie that it’s essential to manage these feelings appropriately and prioritize
the needs of my patient above personal reactions.
Overall, the movie equipped me as a student nurse with an understanding of the wider
context of nursing that this truly happens in the healthcare system. One of the most important
relevance of the movie to nursing course is to remind us students and healthcare professionals
once again to always go back to ethical guidelines and professional duties when faced with this
kind of obstacles.