title: Socioeconomic patterns in health services use in Great Britain and Spain before and after the health system reforms of the 1990s.
abstract: This paper aims to estimate the pattern of physician visits and hospitalisation by socioeconomic position in Great Britain and Spain before and after important changes in their health systems during the 1990s. These changes have been accompanied by a trend toward pro-rich inequality in physician use, especially in outpatient consultation in Great Britain, whereas the pro-poor inequality in GP consultation and the pro-rich inequality in specialist consultation in Spain before the changes have been maintained. Although the pro-rich inequality in hospitalisation observed in both countries before their health system changes continues to be seen, the differences have been reduced, suggesting a trend toward socioeconomic equality in hospitalisation. In any case, with the exception of visits to GP in Spain, in both countries greater use of health services by professionals and managers is observed than for the rest of the population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, Sociology of Health, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Campus de Arrosadía s/n, Pamplona, Navarre, Spain.
authors.forename: Lourdes
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lostao
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Regidor
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gimeno
authors.forename: Gopalakrishnan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Netuveli
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Blane
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D018166:Health Care Reform; D006296:Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D012923:Social Class; D013030:Spain; D006113:United Kingdom