Socioeconomic status and receipt of obstetric services in Canada.

Objective: To examine differences in labor induction and cesarean delivery rates by socioeconomic status in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Methods: We studied all women in Nova Scotia who delivered between 1988 and 1995 after a singleton pregnancy. Information was obtained from the Nova Scotia Atlee Perinatal Database and the federal income tax (T1) Family Files maintained by the Small Area and Administrative Data Division of Statistics Canada (n = 76,440).