Greetings. I wanted to take this moment and introduce myself to the community. My name is David Proffitt and I am honored to be the new Chief Executive Officer of The Acadia Hospital, and a new member of an outstanding team of professionals.

I am excited to learn more about the important work being done at the hospital and I'm also looking forward to making connections in the community and representing Acadia.

I have been blessed to work with many outstanding people who have gifted me pretty much everything I know about serving others. I feel privileged to be associated with an organization of this caliber and am eager to learn from Acadia employees and the people we serve as we move forward with our mission of caring

I come to this position from a foundation as a psychiatric rehabilitation provider. Those experiences shape, to a large degree, the paradigm I have for quality mental health care now. Along with a B.S. and M.S. in therapeutic recreation, I have over a hundred hours in psychiatric rehabilitation training from the University of Boston and a Ph.D. in health administration.

Although not a native Mainer, my family and I love Maine. We all enjoy the outdoors, the exceptionally friendly people, and the strong sense of community.

I love this work. I do. And I enjoy the people who I get to work with; both clients and co-workers. I have a deep belief in recovery and the potential of every individual. I see the work we do at Acadia as assisting others in having a life that they choose and that has value to them.

Finally, I recognize the most powerful tool in helping others is the therapeutic relationship. Our trust-based relationship with clients and their families is the strongest medicine of all. It is the vehicle from which all other health services arrive, and at the core of our caring mission.