Am I allowed to leave ANYTHING for PM shift to do?

First I would like to say we all leave things unfinished sometimes. Day shift or night, sometimes you just don't have enough time to get to every single thing. Your coworkers should understand that there are occasionally not enough hours in the day, and understand that things will not always be completely finished at change of shift. As long as it's not a habit to leave all kinds of things undone, it shouldn't be a big deal when it happens once in a while.

That said, your posts imply that you think night shift does nothing except pass meds at 9pm and then hang out and chat and wait for the sun to come up. For that reason, I think swapping days and nights for a week would be a fantastic idea. I think you would be in for a very rude awakening.

Furthermore, if your attitude in real life comes across as it does in these posts, it's no wonder your night shift coworkers react to you the way they do. Assuming that they do nothing - not even talk to the doctor - all night long, and behaving according to that assumption, is not going to earn you much forgiveness when you pass off all kinds of unfinished tasks.

I did read it and I just now went back and re read it But look at the title of your post.....that and some of your other comments are what made some night time folks a bit irritated.

Sounds like you had a bad day though with a few naggy nurses you work with and shift change always sucks. I can understand that...

Yeah I was a little offended as I often dont even have time for a break on my night shifts. but yes i understand leaving some things for the next shift.

Probably already been said by other night-shifters but I do call doctors. Often doing chart checks I discover meds that have not been given or labs not called and I call in the middle of the night to get chewed out from things missed by dayshift. I am not saying we don't miss things on nights but the majority of the time docs aren't cheery when you wake them. That doesn't mean that I don't have a responsibility to call.

I try not to leave things for dayshift but honestly in the last 15-40 minutes before I leave we are swamped by docs coming in to write orders. We go from 0 to 15 charts with orders in that time. Of course it would help to explain that there are usually 3 rn's that have to give report one at a time and we can't leave until we are all done. Our lpn's usually leave while we are still reporting. So it does get tricky.

Do what you can but don't feel bad if it doesn't all get done. Every nurse has to pass along things once in a while.

I read the whole thread. Again with the assumptions about what other people do or don't do. I still stand by my post. If your attitude in real life comes across as it does online, it's no wonder that night shift nurses respond to you the way they do.

The "shift wars" issue has been around as long as nursing from what I understand. As a night shift nurse, I have but 3 simple requests: Make a honest effort to get your work done. I understand that there are admits, d/c's, deaths, MD orders, and those "from Hell" days. They happen. We know. The 2nd request, please, please at least tell me what is being left over! I can't count how many times I've found labs that have not been addressed, orders that haven't been taken off, etc., "hidden" in a pile under other paperwork. That throws my night off, and you just may well end up getting work dumped right back on you. At least if I'm aware of what I need to get done, I can manage my time differently to accomodate the extra work. I get my work done, I don't leave any over for you. (And vice-versa, yes, I know). The last request, don't make a habit of it. We would all love to leave on time every day, but that usually doesn't happen. If it gets to the point that I see that I'm following you on the schedule, groan, and wonder what spectacular "mess" I'm getting dumped on me today, there's a problem. Each shift has it's good and bad points. No, nights usually doesn't have MD's swarming all over the charts, but we have the distinct pleasure of waking them up at 3AM and getting chewed up one side and down the other. Fun, fun stuff. I know you are tired after a long day, and so are we. We all want to go home. Now, would be great. But, that's not the reality of nursing. And we know your "Timmy" doesn't have a baseball game 3 days a week, just like our "Sally" doesn't have a parent/teacher conference every M-W-F morning. Of course, this all applies to nights leaving a mess for days as well. I've worked days, and have been left with more than one mess from nights. It's an issue that's universal to all shifts. We need to work together to find a better solution to stop the inter-shift spats so we can all focus on pt care. Sorry for the long post, but I see a lot of time and talent wasted on shift issues. To quote an infamous soul, "Can't we all just get along?".