Socioeconomic patterns in the use of public and private health services and equity in health care

Table 1 Definition of the indicators of socioeconomic position used in this study

Education¹	Social Class of the person of reference²	Monthly household income³
Tertiary education	I–II	More than 1800 euros
Second stage of tertiary education	Legislators, senior officials and mangers	More than 6000 euros
First stage of tertiary education	Professionals	3601 to 6000 euros
	Technicians and associated professionals	1801 to 3600 euros
Upper secondary education
	III	1201 a 1800 euros
Lower secondary, or second stage of basic education	Clerks
	Administrative personnel	901 a 1200 euros
No education or primary education	Service and sales workers
Primary education or first stage of basic education	Self-employed	Up to 900 euros
Pre-primary education	Supervisors	601 to 900 euros
No education at all		361 to 600 euros
	IV	Less than 360 euros
	Skilled manual workers
	V–VI
	Semi-skilled manual workers
	Unskilled manual workers

1. Based on highest academic diploma received.
2. The question referred to current or last occupation held by the person of reference (the one who contributed the largest income to the household). Occupation was coded according to the 1994 National Classification of Occupations and was assigned to a social class based on the classification of the Spanish Society of Epidemiology¹⁷.
3. The question referred to the monthly income of all household members, whatever the source of the income, after tax deductions. Respondents had to choose one alternative from eight income ranges.

ISSN: 1472-6963