[Patients' complaints--many channels and poor oversight].

Patients' complaints in Norway about personal injury or professional misconduct may either be handled locally, or pass through one of two channels: the administrative channel or the legal channel for claims for damages. At present we are in a phase of transition, with a tendency to shift from settling cases in courts of law, which requires proof of professional negligence for damage award, to an official insurance system of compensation based on objective evidence. The administrative channel handles cases of alleged misconduct or malpractice. Allocation of cases to one or the other channel is somewhat haphazard. Comparing our system with the Swedish one, I make a plea for reassessment.