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The handover among healthcare professionals has been a topic of increasing interest over recent years. Many studies have shown that ineffective communication during handover can be critical, particularly for anaesthesiologists and intensivists because of the highly complex needs of patients under their care. Numerous studies have identified the information transfer process as the greatest risk of errors and adverse events (AEs), which results in harm to patients, increases legal issues and damages relations between health professionals. The adoption of effective communication methods determines a significant improvement of the handover and a reduction in the frequency of errors and AEs. The purpose of this document is to focus attention on the problem in order to promote heightened safety procedures within health facilities. Among the numerous methods validated in clinical practice, the authors have chosen the I-PASS method (Illness, Patient, Action, Situation, Synthesis) for its effectiveness on a clinical level, to prevent AEs, and because it is easily tailored to the various work environments in which Italian Anaesthesiologists and Intensivists operate.

On February 21st, 2020 the first case of severe acute respiratory syndrome due to the coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causing the CoViD-19 disease, was identified in Italy. In the following days, despite the restrictive public health measures aimed to avoid the infection's spread, the number of cases increased. As of March 8th, 2020, Italy is the 2nd most affected country in the world. As of March 6th, 2020, the Italian Society of Anesthesia Analgesia Resuscitation and Intensive Care (SIAARTI) published operational recommendations and ethical considerations to support the clinicians involved in the care of critically-ill CoViD-19 patients, in regard a probable scenario where an imbalance between supply and demand of ICU beds, is put in place by a steadily rising number of these patients.