Hospitalization data may be used as an indicator of the quality of care in family practice. There were marked differences between hospitalization rates in a rural family practice and the corresponding national rural rates, which raised questions about the reasons for these differences. All 309 hospital admissions recorded between 1987 and 1990 in a rural family practice were then studied to determine the hospital admission pattern. The crude hospitalization rate of this practice over the period studied was 74/1000 person-years at risk. After indirect standardization with the national Jewish rural hospitalization rate, the actual number of hospitalizations for the family practice (309) was 24% less than would have been expected (407) had the national rural rate applied to the family practice population during the study period. The decreases between actual and expected admissions were greater in the infant, adolescent and elderly age-groups. Continuity-of-care by a single provider in the study practice is presented as an important factor in determining the smaller number of practice hospitalizations recorded.