Full-Time

Activity Therapist

Updated on 8/7/2026

Deadline 5/29/27
Acadia Healthcare

Acadia Healthcare

1,001-5,000 employees

Operates extensive behavioral health treatment network

Compensation Overview

$25/hr

Indio, CA, USA

In Person

Bachelor's, Master's

Category
Medical, Clinical & Veterinary (1)
Required Skills
CPR
First Aid

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Requirements
  • A Bachelor's degree in Therapeutic Recreation, Recreational Therapy, or a related field is required.
  • Three or more years of recreation experience in a healthcare setting, including knowledge of the patient population served by the facility, is required.
  • Certification as a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist, current pursuit of national certification, certification in a specialty area such as art, dance, or music, or clinical professional licensure such as Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor or Licensed Professional Counselor with certification in expressive therapy is required.
  • Certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, de-escalation, and restraint is required; training is available upon hire.
  • First aid may be required based on state or facility requirements.
Responsibilities
  • Complete activity assessments through patient observation and patient or family interviews, obtaining information about patients' needs, skills, interests, and limitations to develop and implement treatment plans.
  • Plan, organize, direct, and implement activities within the treatment program to facilitate patient progress toward treatment goals.
  • Plan and implement activities programs including therapeutic leisure skills and activities, leisure education, and leisure awareness.
  • Facilitate and lead activity sessions to improve patients' mental and physical well-being.
  • Instruct patients in activities and techniques such as sports, dance, music, art, and relaxation techniques designed to meet their specific needs.
  • Develop treatment plans and implement activity interventions that meet patients' needs and interests and help them achieve treatment goals.
  • Engage patients in therapeutic activities such as exercise, games, and community outings.
  • Help patients learn social skills needed to become or remain independent.
  • Modify activities to suit the needs of specific groups.
  • Maintain a positive, empathetic, and professional attitude toward customers, acknowledge and resolve unmet patient needs and complaints, and prioritize patient safety.
  • Perform other functions and tasks as assigned.
Desired Qualifications
  • A Master's degree is preferred.
  • Previous experience in recreation in a healthcare setting is preferred.

Acadia Healthcare runs a large network of behavioral health facilities across 40 states, offering inpatient, residential, and outpatient care for mental health and addiction. Its services include inpatient psychiatric care, substance abuse detox, medication-assisted treatment, family therapy, and experiential therapies, delivered through 230 locations and coordinated across levels of care. It differentiates itself by scale, the variety of treatment tracks, and its strategy of forming joint ventures with established health systems to expand reach. Its goal is to improve access to behavioral health care by growing its nationwide network and partnerships to provide coordinated, end-to-end treatment.

Company Size

1,001-5,000

Company Stage

IPO

Headquarters

Franklin, Texas

Founded

2005

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Q2 2026 free cash flow hit $124 million; debt fell $113 million.
  • Acadia opened 144-bed Orlando and 96-bed Iowa hospitals, accelerating 2026 bed growth.
  • 2026 guidance rose to $3.40-$3.45 billion revenue and $590-$615 million EBITDA.

What critics are saying

  • A $179 million securities settlement ended April 2026, exposing governance and disclosure failures.
  • Florida jury damages reached $105 million in May 2026 at Fashion Valley CTC.
  • March 2026 email breach exposed patient data, inviting HIPAA scrutiny and reputation damage.

What makes Acadia Healthcare unique

  • Debbie Osteen returned January 2026, restoring Acadia's veteran behavioral-health operating playbook.
  • 2026 joint ventures with Orlando Health and Methodist Jennie Edmundson expand local market access.
  • Acadia remains the largest stand-alone behavioral health network, with 250 facilities across 39 states.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(k) Retirement Plan

401(k) Company Match

Paid Vacation

Paid Sick Leave

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

10%

1 year growth

10%

2 year growth

10%
MarketBeat
Jul 29th, 2026
Acadia Healthcare Q2 earnings call highlights.

Acadia Healthcare Q2 earnings call highlights. July 29, 2026 Key points. * Second-quarter revenue was $866 million, flat year over year, while adjusted EBITDA reached $149.2 million. Excluding the impact of supplemental payment programs, revenue grew 2.8% and same-facility revenue increased 3.2%. * Acadia continued expanding its network, adding more than 300 beds in the first half and remaining on track to add 500-600 beds in 2026. Recently opened facilities are ramping ahead of expectations, while start-up losses and corporate overhead remained under control. * The company generated $124 million in free cash flow and repaid $113 million of debt, ending the quarter with net leverage of about 4.1 times adjusted EBITDA. Acadia updated its 2026 outlook to revenue of $3.4-$3.45 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $590-$615 million. * MarketBeat previews the top five stocks to own by August 1st. Acadia Healthcare NASDAQ: ACHC reported second-quarter 2026 results that management said were in line with expectations, supported by progress at recently opened facilities, disciplined spending and strong free cash flow generation. Revenue totaled $866 million, unchanged from the prior-year quarter. The comparison was affected by supplemental payment programs: second-quarter 2025 included $48.7 million from Tennessee payments related to prior periods, while the latest quarter included $22.3 million from Florida payments related to the 2025 program year. Excluding those items, revenue would have increased 2.8% year over year, according to Interim Chief Financial Officer David Duckworth. Adjusted EBITDA was $149.2 million. The result included a $26.1 million benefit from Florida supplemental payments, offset by a $28.6 million actuarial adjustment increasing professional and general liability reserves for prior-year cases. Together, those items reduced adjusted EBITDA by $2.5 million relative to the company's April guidance, Duckworth said. Same-Facility trends and service lines. Same-facility revenue was flat year over year, as a 0.8% increase in patient days was offset by a 0.8% decline in revenue per patient day. After adjusting for the Florida and Tennessee supplemental payments related to prior periods, same-facility revenue growth would have been 3.2%. Duckworth said changes to New York's Medicaid program affected Acadia's Pennsylvania facilities and reduced same-facility revenue growth by about 1 percentage point. The company said it has been working to expand referral sources in Pennsylvania and other states. * Acute care: Revenue was $495 million, flat year over year but up 6% after normalizing for supplemental payments. Management cited strong volumes and admissions at existing acute facilities as well as newer joint-venture and de novo locations. * Specialty care: Revenue was $134 million, up 4% sequentially from the first quarter. The business experienced the full-quarter impact of the New York Medicaid decision. * Residential treatment centers: Revenue rose 12% year over year to $97 million, driven by volume growth and higher revenue per day. * Comprehensive treatment centers: Revenue was $141 million, flat year over year. Acadia opened two CTC clinics during the quarter and said it continues to see demand for opioid-treatment services, although the segment performed slightly below its expectations. Chief Executive Officer Debbie Osteen said Acadia's facilities opened between 2023 and 2026 generated revenue and facility-level EBITDA ahead of management's expectations during the quarter. The company continues to target $200 million of incremental adjusted EBITDA from that group of facilities relative to 2025. Osteen pointed to Coachella Valley, a 2024 de novo facility, as an example of the ramp-up progress. The facility is above 90% occupancy, she said, and Acadia is evaluating additional bed capacity there. Expansion, staffing and cost controls. Acadia opened two acute facilities during the quarter: a 144-bed joint-venture facility with Orlando Health in Florida and a 96-bed joint-venture facility with Methodist Jennie Edmundson in Iowa. The company added more than 300 beds in the first half and remains on track to add 500 to 600 beds in 2026, including a planned de novo acute-facility opening near Jacksonville, Florida, in the third quarter. Management said it has shortened timelines for licensing, accreditation and payer contracting at new facilities. Osteen also cited closer communication with joint-venture partners and greater expense discipline as factors helping new sites ramp more quickly. Start-up facility losses were $12 million in the second quarter, better than management expected, although Duckworth said losses could rise to roughly $12 million to $14 million in the third quarter because of recent and planned openings. He said the company expects the amount to decline below $12 million in the fourth quarter as facilities mature. Duckworth said the labor market remained stable, with wage-cost growth running around 3% overall, though results vary by role and geography. Acadia also reported that corporate overhead declined by about $3 million from the first quarter and was flat year over year. Cash flow, debt reduction and updated outlook. Operating cash flow was $162 million in the second quarter, while capital expenditures were $39 million, resulting in free cash flow of $124 million. Acadia repaid $113 million of debt and ended the quarter with $171 million in cash and cash equivalents. Its net leverage ratio was approximately 4.1 times adjusted EBITDA as of June 30. The company revised its full-year capital-expenditure forecast to $235 million to $255 million, including $120 million to $140 million expected in the second half. Duckworth said the revision reflects the timing of projects and a more disciplined approach to capital deployment. Acadia expects positive free cash flow in the second half. For 2026, Acadia updated its outlook to: * Revenue of $3.4 billion to $3.45 billion; * Adjusted EBITDA of $590 million to $615 million; * Adjusted earnings per share of $1.45 to $1.60; and * Operating cash flow of $350 million to $400 million. The guidance does not fully include potential expansion of supplemental payment programs. Duckworth said Florida and Ohio programs under regulatory review for the 2026 program year could add more than $20 million in incremental EBITDA, while the company included a $5 million historical baseline amount for Florida in its third-quarter expectations. On liability reserves, Duckworth said the $28.6 million second-quarter adjustment was primarily tied to prior-year cases from the 2025 policy year moving toward settlement. He said reserves for the current year remain consistent with prior expectations of $100 million to $110 million, while the inclusion of the prior-year adjustment puts the total annual amount in a range of roughly $130 million to $135 million. About Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC). Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc NASDAQ: ACHC is a publicly traded provider of behavioral healthcare services headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee. Founded in 2005, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish itself as a leading specialist in mental health and addiction treatment across the United States. Acadia operates a diversified network of inpatient psychiatric hospitals, residential treatment centers, outpatient clinics and intensive outpatient programs. This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected]. Before you consider Acadia Healthcare, you'll want to hear this. MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Acadia Healthcare wasn't on the list. While Acadia Healthcare currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys. Learn the basics of options trading and how to use them to boost returns and manage risk with this free report from MarketBeat. Click the link below to get your free copy.

CU Independent
Jul 4th, 2026
What psychiatric hospital abuse claims mean for patient families.

What psychiatric hospital abuse claims mean for patient families. Psychiatric hospitals exist for moments when depression, psychosis, mania, withdrawal, or suicidal thoughts create immediate danger. Families in St. Louis, Missouri, and across Illinois place enormous trust in locked units because loved ones need observation, medication review, and protection from harm. That trust has been shaken by a growing number of abuse claims against Acadia Healthcare, one of the nation's largest behavioral health operators. In Missouri, lawsuits have targeted Lakeland Behavioral Health System and CenterPointe Hospital, while Illinois allegations have included Timberline Knolls and Chicago Lakeshore Hospital. In May 2025, 31 former patients filed lawsuits against Lakeland alone, alleging abuse, neglect, and retaliation at a facility that primarily treats children. Timberline Knolls closed permanently in February 2025 after years of sexual assault allegations, and Highland Ridge Hospital in Utah was shut down in 2024 following repeated sanctions for failing to protect patients from sexual assaults. When abuse claims emerge, that trust can rupture. Reports may involve improper restraints, ignored medical symptoms, assault, coercion, or unsafe discharge plans. Families reviewing the Acadia hospital lawsuit can see how civil cases examine staffing, restraint logs, incident reports, admission conduct, and leadership decisions. For relatives, a claim may become the clearest path toward facts and accountability when a loved one has been harmed in a facility that was supposed to provide safe care. What claims can cover. Claims may involve physical force, sexual abuse, verbal threats, humiliation, forced seclusion, or restraint without clinical need. Neglect can matter when personnel miss suicide risk, dehydration, infection, medication reactions, hygiene problems, or withdrawal symptoms. Some cases examine unlawful confinement after a patient asks to leave. Others focus on admission pressure, delayed release, or billing tied to unnecessary stays. Why families feel shut out. Psychiatric units often restrict visits, calls, clothing, and personal items to reduce immediate safety risks. Those limits may be appropriate, yet they also narrow outside visibility. Relatives can be left with brief updates, chart notes, and a patient's fragmented account. Trust erodes when explanations sound guarded. Written records matter because distress, sedation, and trauma can distort later recall. Records that matter. Medical charts may show admission criteria, diagnoses, medication orders, vital signs, injuries, restraints, seclusion checks, and physician notes. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requires all participating psychiatric hospitals to meet conditions of participation that include patient rights protections and strict standards for the use of restraint and seclusion. Incident reports can identify witnesses and document staff responses. Video retention logs, phone records, shift rosters, discharge papers, and billing entries may add context. Families should keep photos, messages, invoices, complaint letters, and appointment notes arranged by date. Warning signs after discharge. A patient may return home with unexplained marks, missing property, insomnia, panic, or fear of certain workers. Some describe rough handling, threats, isolation, missed meals, or unanswered calls for help. Others struggle to give a clear account because symptoms, medication, or trauma interfere with memory. Families should listen calmly, then write exact statements soon afterward. Civil claims and accountability. A civil claim asks whether a hospital, employee, contractor, or parent company failed to meet accepted care standards. It may seek compensation for treatment, counseling, pain, lost wages, disability support, or future clinical needs. Litigation can reveal patterns in hiring, training, observation checks, restraint policy, and incident reporting. Court orders may preserve records before they disappear. Reporting paths. Families may report concerns to state health agencies, adult protective services, disability rights organizations, licensing boards, patient advocates, or law enforcement. The correct route depends on age, injury type, state rules, and current danger. Immediate risk requires emergency help. Written complaints should list dates, names, room numbers, witnesses, symptoms, injuries, and requests for investigation updates. The role of consent. Mental health privacy rules may limit what relatives receive without patient permission. Still, families can usually give information to providers, file complaints, and document suspected harm. When the patient can sign releases, chart access becomes easier. Guardianship, medical power of attorney, or parental authority may affect rights. Legal guidance can prevent missed deadlines and avoidable record disputes. Evidence should be preserved. Time can weaken a psychiatric abuse case. Surveillance footage may be overwritten, employees may transfer, wounds may fade, and memories may shift. Families should request records promptly and avoid editing photos or messages. A simple timeline helps organize events. Each entry should include date, location, people present, visible injury, reported statement, and any response received. Trauma needs care too. Legal action cannot replace clinical support. Patients may need trauma therapy, medication reassessment, primary care follow-up, sleep treatment, or peer support. Families can help by keeping routines calm, avoiding blame, and letting the person decide what details to share. Support should protect dignity. The aim is recovery, safety, and renewed confidence in care. Conclusion. Psychiatric hospital abuse claims carry serious meaning for patient families. They can clarify troubling events, preserve evidence, and test whether a facility met basic clinical duties. Such claims also remind its health system that people in crisis need dignity, safety, and honest communication. Families do not need every answer immediately. Careful documentation, prompt reporting, medical follow-up, and informed legal guidance can protect rights while supporting healing. Maya Rodriguez, a certified wellness coach, has been writing about beauty and health for seven years now. She focuses on skincare routines, hair care tips, and simple health habits that fit into busy lives. Maya's articles turn complicated advice into easy steps anyone can follow. During her passtime, she enjoys hiking, cooking healthy meals, and testing new natural remedies. She believes that caring for yourself should be simple, affordable, and something you look forward to every day. Table of contents.

Becker's Behavioral Health
May 20th, 2026
Iowa behavioral health provider opens 96-bed facility.

Iowa behavioral health provider opens 96-bed facility. By: Ella Ruder Methodist Jennie Edmundson Behavioral Health in Council Bluffs, Iowa, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new 96-bed behavioral health hospital. The hospital, slated to open to patients in June, is a joint venture between Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital and Franklin, Tenn.-based Acadia Healthcare, according to a May 19 news release. The facility will provide acute inpatient care, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient programs and electroconvulsive therapy for children, adolescents, adults and older adults. The hospital includes outdoor spaces and a gym. It will be staffed by multidisciplinary care teams composed of psychiatrists, nurse practitioners, nurses, therapists, social workers and other specialists. Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital, established in 1886 and affiliated with Methodist Health System since 1994, is a 236-bed regional healthcare center serving approximately 250,000 residents in western Iowa. The organization employs more than 800 employees and more than 300 physicians. Acadia Healthcare operates 275 behavioral healthcare facilities with approximately 12,400 beds across 40 states and Puerto Rico, according to the release. The company has approximately 25,000 employees serving more than 84,000 patients daily. At the Becker's Fall Behavioral Health Summit, taking place November 4-5 in Chicago, behavioral health leaders and executives will explore strategies for expanding access to care, integrating services, addressing workforce challenges and leveraging innovation to improve outcomes across the behavioral health continuum. Apply for complimentary registration now. Next up in Behavioral Health news. * 10 states with highest, lowest mental illness prevalence Oregon had the highest prevalence of any mental illness among states, while New Jersey had the lowest, according to KFF... By: Ella Ruder * 10 states with highest, lowest serious mental illness rates Utah had the highest prevalence of serious mental illness among states, while New Jersey had the lowest, according to KFF... By: Ella Ruder * U of Arizona launches mind-body medicine education program The Tucson-based University of Arizona Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine and physician Steve Bierman, MD, have partnered to launch... By: Ella Ruder

The Apopka Chief
May 15th, 2026
Orlando Health cuts ribbon on behavioral health hospital in Apopka.

Orlando Health cuts ribbon on behavioral health hospital in Apopka. May 15, 2026 | 3:57 pm Vinnie Cammarano Key points. * Orlando Health and Acadia Healthcare opened a new 144-bed Behavioral Health Hospital in Apopka to address Central Florida's mental health needs. * The 100,000-square-foot hospital offers inpatient care, partial hospitalization, outpatient programs and electroconvulsive therapy. * Mayor Nick Nesta noted the hospital supports job creation and strengthens Apopka's role as a healthcare hub in Central Florida. Apopka officials, healthcare leaders and community members gathered Friday morning to celebrate the opening of the new Orlando Health Behavioral Health Hospital, a 144-bed inpatient facility that leaders said is intended to help address growing mental health and substance abuse treatment needs across Central Florida. The ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the public debut of the new 100,000-square-foot hospital at 1452 S. Orange Blossom Trail, a joint venture between Orlando Health and Acadia Healthcare that is expected to begin serving patients next month. The facility will provide behavioral healthcare services for children, adolescents, adults and senior adults experiencing acute mental health needs. Hospital leaders said the project represents a major expansion of behavioral healthcare access in the region at a time when demand for services continues to grow. Become A member. The Apopka Chief does not have a paywall, but pavement-pounding journalism is not free. Join your neighbors who make this vital work possible. "This hospital exists because leaders recognized a need across Central Florida and greater Orlando for better access to behavioral healthcare, and they made a commitment to address it," Acadia Healthcare CEO Debbie Osteen said during the ceremony. According to hospital materials distributed at the event, the facility will offer acute inpatient care, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient programs and electroconvulsive therapy. The hospital also will treat patients with co-occurring substance abuse disorders. Edward Smith, CEO of Orlando Health Behavioral Health Hospital, described the project as one of the most significant healthcare investments made in the region's behavioral health system in decades. "Every day, people find themselves in behavioral healthcare settings on the most difficult days of their lives," Smith said. "They are parents, children, coworkers, neighbors." Smith said the hospital is designed not only to help patients in crisis, but also to support long-term recovery through a continuum of care that includes inpatient and outpatient treatment options. "This hospital expands how we care for people," Smith said. "It allows us to build a continuum of care that supports individuals not just in crisis, but long after they recover." Dr. Matt Angelelli, chair of behavioral health for Orlando Health, said clinicians are seeing a broad range of mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. "There's more stress in the world, so people have a harder time coping," Angelelli said in an interview following the ceremony. "So we're seeing more people that need help." Angelelli also said healthcare providers continue to see strong demand for youth behavioral health services. "It's always been busy, but it's still busy," Angelelli said. One of the major challenges behavioral health providers face, Angelelli said, is the shortage of inpatient beds, which often leaves patients waiting in emergency rooms for treatment placement. "They sit in emergency departments," Angelelli said. "And then this is what's nice about this place - it's big enough that we'll make a dent in it. It's not going to take care of it all, but we'll make a dent in it." Angelelli said the new facility differs from many older behavioral health centers because it was purpose-built as a behavioral health hospital rather than retrofitted into an existing building. "A lot of places are built as afterthoughts," Angelelli said. "This was built to be a behavioral health unit from the beginning." He said the design allows safety features to be built in from the start, rather than added later to an older building. Mayor Nick Nesta, who spoke during the ceremony, called behavioral healthcare "one of the most urgent challenges facing our region and our nation." "This facility represents a major investment in the health and future of our community," Nesta said. "It reinforces Apopka's role as a growing hub for healthcare in Central Florida." Nesta said the hospital represents an investment in workforce development and future healthcare professionals. "This also helps support job creation and strengthens our local healthcare workforce," Nesta said. Osteen said behavioral health challenges affect communities nationwide, with many individuals delaying treatment because of stigma or concerns about how seeking help could affect their personal or professional lives. "But we know that when care is available close to home, people are more likely to seek help, and they're more likely to seek help sooner and stay connected to treatment," Osteen said. * Teresa Sargeant Teresa Sargeant has been with The Apopka Chief for over 10 years. Suggested articles. The Apopka Chief Trusted local news since 1923 Subscription Form (Sidebar)

Yahoo Finance
Mar 5th, 2026
Canyon Capital dumps $13M Acadia Healthcare stake as shares fall 22%

Canyon Capital Advisors exited its entire position in Acadia Healthcare, selling 521,774 shares worth approximately $12.92 million in the fourth quarter, according to an SEC filing dated 17 February 2026. Acadia Healthcare shares traded at $22.74 on Tuesday, down 22% over the past year, significantly underperforming the S&P 500's 16% gain. The behavioural healthcare provider operates inpatient psychiatric hospitals and treatment facilities across the United States and Puerto Rico. Whilst revenue rose 6.1% in Q4 to $821.5 million, the company reported a $996.2 million goodwill impairment tied to facility closures. Adjusted EBITDA fell to $608.9 million for the year, with net leverage at 4.0x adjusted EBITDA. Canyon Capital's exit suggests a preference for asset-backed plays over healthcare turnaround risk.