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Another horrifying true crime limited series has just hit Netflix. The Nurse, a Danish thriller series directed by Kasper Barfoed, recounts the story of Christina Aistrup Hansen, a nurse who was arrested in March 2015 for allegedly killing her patients at Nykøbing Falster Hospital in Denmark. The series stars Josephine Park as Hansen and Fanny Louis Bernth as fellow nurse Pernille Kurzmann, per IMDb.
The story, which is eerily similar to the story of killer nurse Charles Cullen from Netflix’s 2022 series The Good Nurse, explores Hansen’s crimes as she builds a friendship with a fresh-out-of-school nurse named Pernille Kurzmann. Kurzmann’s discoveries about her coworker eventually lead to one of the most troubling criminal trials in Denmark.
So, what is there to know about this new Netflix series and the story it’s based on? Women’s Health has all the details.
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Is The Nurse a true story?
The series is based on a book written by Kristian Corfixen, titled The Nurse: The True Story Behind One Of Scandinavia’s Most Notorious Criminal Trials. The book documents the story of a real nurse named Christina Aistrup Hansen, who was arrested in March 2015 for intentionally killing patients in southern Denmark.
During night shifts, Hansen would dose patients with lethal medication in order to worsen their conditions before trying to “save” them again. Her seemingly “heroic” actions meant that Hansen was well-respected, and had a good reputation at the hospital. But unfortunately, Hansen was not always able to save the patients she harmed.
On March 1, 2015, Hansen’s behavior came to a head when two patients died under her care, and another 73-year-old woman was revived at the last minute.
Dutch journalist Kristian Corfixen investigated the crime in his book—combing through police reports, first-hand accounts from witnesses of Hansen’s crimes, and medical records. Director Kasper Barfoed then used that book as the basis for the series.
“Nobody knows more about the case than [Corfixen] did,” Barfoed told Netflix.
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How much of the series is accurate to real life?
The Nurse appears to closely follow Hansen’s real story and Corfixen’s book. However, the series also develops Kurzmann and Hansen’s relationship.
Director Kasper Barfoed told Netflix the series tried to determine how Hansen’s crimes went undetected for so long. According to multiple sources, Hansen’s first victim was traced back to a deceased patient in 2012, whose blood contained the same deadly medication combination that killed two patients in 2015.
Many employees at the hospital were suspicious of Hansen, however, no one spoke up until Kurzmann finally reported her in 2015. Kurzmann had only started working at the hospital a year prior, according to her Facebook page.
Who Is Pernille Kurzmann?
The miniseries is told from Pernille Kurzmann’s point of view. Kurzmann was fresh out of nursing school and had just started her first job at Nykøbing when she met Hansen in 2014.
Kurzmann and Hansen become quite close in the Netflix miniseries (it’s unclear if this happened in real life), and the two become the hospital’s “dream team.” According to Netflix, Kurzmann became suspicious of Hansen when she noticed patients were dying in her care at an unusual rate.
“So many people suspected something or saw something—and yet it’s the new nurse, the one who’s in her first job who not only senses something is wrong, but who actually does something about it and risks everything,” director Kasper Barfoed told Netflix.
Kurzmann also became a key witness in Hansen’s trial, per Berlingske, a Danish news site. 70 other witnesses would later come forward to testify against Hansen, per Radio Times.
Where is Pernille Kurzmann now?
She still works at Nykøbing Falster Hospital. Kurzmann got married, and goes by Pernille Kurzmann Lundén now. (Niels Lundén, her now-husband, and then-boyfriend, is also depicted in the series).
Did Christina Hansen go to prison?
In real life, Hansen was arrested in 2015, and charged in 2016 with three murders (one in 2012, and two in 2015), one attempted murder charge, and one count of stealing sleeping medicine from Nykøbing, according to Berlingske. The prosecution alleged that Hansen’s “histrionic personality disorder,” may have motivated her crimes.
The court found Hansen guilty of all charges, per Berlingske.
Where is Christina Hansen now?
Hansen’s trial lasted around 28 days, and at the end, she was sentenced to life in prison, per Domstole, a Danish news site. However, in 2017, after she appealed the first conviction, a higher court convicted her of four counts of attempted murder, and reduced Hansen’s sentence to 12 years, per Digital Spy. She is set to be released in 2028.
Where can I watch The Nurse?
The miniseries is currently available to stream on Netflix. The series consists of four, hour-long episodes.
News Editorial Assistant
Olivia Evans (she/her) is an editorial assistant at Women’s Health. Her work has previously appeared in The Cut and Teen Vogue. She loves covering topics where culture and wellness intersect. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, running, and watching rom-coms.
