The Retrievals

By: Serial Productions & The New York Times
  • Summary

  • Dozens of women seeking to become mothers came to a fertility clinic at Yale. A (five-part) narrative series about the shocking events that unfolded there. From Serial Productions and The New York Times. To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com
    2023 Serial Productions and The New York Times
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Episodes
  • Trailer
    Jun 22 2023

    The patients in this story came to the Yale Fertility Center to pursue pregnancy. They began their I.V.F. cycles full of expectation and hope. Then a surgical procedure called egg retrieval caused them excruciating pain.

    Some of the patients screamed out in the procedure room. Others called the clinic from home to report pain in the hours that followed. But most of the staff members who fielded the patients’ reports did not know the real reason for the pain, which was that a nurse at the clinic was stealing fentanyl, and replacing it with saline.

    From Serial Productions and The New York Times, The Retrievals is a five-part narrative series reported by Susan Burton, a veteran staff member at “This American Life” and author of the memoir “Empty.”

    Susan details the events that unfolded at the clinic, and examines how the patients’ distinct identities informed the way they made sense of what happened to them in the procedure room. The nurse, too, has her own story, about her own pain, that she tells to the court. And then there is the story of how this all could have happened at the Yale clinic in the first place.

    Throughout, Burton explores the stories we tell about women’s pain. How do we tolerate, interpret and account for it? What happens when pain is minimized or dismissed?

    Episode 1 of The Retrievals arrives Thursday, June 29th.

    To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts.

    To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter.

    Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com

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    3 mins
  • Episode 1: The Patients
    Jun 29 2023

    Patients at a fertility clinic experience excruciating, unexpected pain. For months the reason for that pain remains hidden. Then they get a letter from the clinic.

    To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts.

    To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter.

    Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com

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    57 mins
  • Episode 2: The Nurse
    Jul 6 2023

    The patients know what happened to them. Now they learn who did it. The story of the nurse whose own pain was also unseen.

    To get full access to this show, and to other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts.

    To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter.

    Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com

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    35 mins

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Shocking

As a nurse of 40+ years I have seen narcotic security evolve from simple keyed cabinets ( with 1 key) to computer controlled ‘cabinets’ which required your fingerprint and /or a code to enter. It is possible to still steal some amount of drugs BUT, in my experience, most people are caught in short order because there is a trail. Besides the computer or paper trail, other professionals notice issues with patient comfort and will say and/or act on it. The institution has serious issues if that took 5 months.
I love the way you give all the ‘perspectives’

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