ATI Physical Therapy Careers Blog

Explore ATI Passport for PTAs

August 24, 2026

We’re excited to announce the upcoming launch of the ATI Passport PTA Travel Program in August 2026. For years, ATI has offered physical therapists the opportunity to experience the flexibility and adventure of travel therapy with our Explore ATI Launch and Passport programs. Both programs have allowed our team members to explore new territories while enjoying the stability, support, and benefits of being an ATI teammate. Soon, we’ll be extending that same opportunity to our PTA colleagues through Passport.

ATI Passport for PTAs is designed for clinicians who want the freedom of travel contracts with the security of a long-term career. With the Passport program, PTAs will have:

The opportunity to support key clinics across the country
Gain diverse clinical experiences
Explore new communities
Continue growing professionally while remaining part of the ATI team

This program represents another exciting step forward in attracting and retaining exceptional clinicians while expanding access to care for our patients. Together, we can help more outstanding PTs and PTAs discover ATI and continue our journey toward becoming the best physical therapy company in the country!

Clinical Excellence

Understanding ATI’s Care Model

August 24, 2026

The term “Care Model” is often used across ATI clinics and meetings, yet if you asked five clinicians to define it, you might hear five different answers. Some might describe it as rehab classification, others as time to care or care pathways. In truth, all of these contribute to the model, but together they form something more unified and purposeful.

The ATI Care Model is defined as addressing specific patient needs to achieve optimal patient outcomes by prioritizing early access and appropriate dosage, as established by a patient’s rehab classification, delivered through appropriate team-based care and optimized through caseload rounds.

Simply put, the ATI Care Model is how we translate patient needs into best patient outcomes. It connects what matters most to our patients- fast access, the right amount of care, and a trusted team- with the processes and behaviors that ensure they don’t just feel better; they get well.

There is no single “correct” number for visits or weeks of treatment because every patient’s journey is unique. What defines The ATI Way is not rigid frequency or duration, but a consistent framework for clinical reasoning, teamwork, and follow-up.

When we accurately classify patient needs, design a plan to deliver the right care at the right time, and monitor progress in real time through caseload rounds, we are practicing the ATI Care Model and delivering high-value, patient-centered care.

Physical Therapy

Back to School: How to Thrive as a Student…

August 24, 2026

It’s back-to-school time, and as a way to offer some advice to the incoming class, our team spoke with Clinical Development Program Lead Jackie Davenport, PT, DPT, OCS, and Director, University Recruitment Kelvin Wong, PT, DPT, MBA. Together, they offered some important insights for students to keep in mind at the start of the year and throughout their studies:

Clinical Development Program Lead Jackie Davenport, PT, DPT, OCS

Remember Your “Why”: Remember, physical therapy is about making an impact, seeing how your exercise program, manual skills, knowledge, and expertise help people live better.
Be Wise about Money: Be mindful of spending and truly understand the impact of compounding interest. Make a plan for the future, including how to pay back loans while earning a standard PT salary.
Always Keep Learning: PT school cannot teach you everything. The rest of your career will be a continuous journey of becoming a better clinician to deliver better care to the people you care for. Stay humble, embrace what you don’t know, and be willing to learn from everyone around you.

Director, University Recruitment Kelvin Wong, PT, DPT, MBA

Stay Curious: Take advantage of every patient encounter by asking your clinical instructor why they chose a particular examination, intervention, or progression. Clinical rotations are one of the few times you’ll have experienced clinicians walking you through their decision-making in real time.
Focus on Relationships, NOT Just Skills: Great outpatient clinicians build trust with patients, collaborate with teammates, and communicate effectively with referral sources. Introduce yourself to everyone, learn from other clinicians, and make each patient feel heard and valued.
Embrace Feedback and Keep Improving: Feedback is one of the fastest ways to grow. Ask your clinical instructor for one thing you did well and one thing you can improve after each day or week. Small, consistent improvements compound into confident clinical practice.

Clinical Excellence

Hand Therapy: Where PT and OT Meet

June 5, 2026

During the first week of June, ATI recognizes Hand Therapy Week, celebrating the physical therapists and occupational therapists who practice this unique specialty. While PT focuses on building physical strength and OT emphasizes function and independent daily living, the two converge, combining specialized expertise to restore upper extremity function after injury, surgery, or overuse.

At ATI, we focus on creating an environment where our clinicians can thrive, offering mentorship and opportunities to create the practice and career they want. Our Certified Hand Therapists serve our patients in the clinics, supporting patients through vulnerable moments so they can return to the activities they need and want to do.

“I chose ATI because of its strong commitment to growing the field of hand therapy,” Emmanuel Acheampong, Occupational Therapist, said. “As a new graduate, it’s exciting to see a major organization actively investing in this specialty, and I look forward to growing alongside it while continuing to develop my clinical skills.”

Additionally, some of our providers pursue clinical research opportunities alongside their daily clinical duties by serving as Research Fellows for the Institute of Musculoskeletal Advancement (iMSKA), an organization ATI is proud to work with.

Clinical Excellence

From the Clinic to the Classroom and Back Again

June 5, 2026

Back in 2024, ATI announced a partnership with Tufts University, creating a unique opportunity for team members to develop and grow their career. Recently, we sat down with Operations Support Specialist JaNaisha Handy, who is currently enrolled in the program, to learn more about how working at ATI has given her direction and support towards her future career.

After graduating from the University of Delaware in 2023 with a degree in Health Behavior Science, JaNaisha was unsure of her direct career path, but she was sure that she wanted to be in healthcare. When she began her tenure at ATI the same year, the building blocks to her future career path started falling into place.

Athletic Trainer

I’m Lovin’ It: Our ATs and PT Sports Residents…

June 5, 2026

When the nation’s best athletes perform, ATI is there to help keep them moving. Once again, ATI served as the official physical therapy provider for the McDonald’s All-American Games. Four of ATI’s Sports Medicine Athletic Trainers traveled to Phoenix for the big game and split their time between the all-star teams with help from three of ATI’s PT Sports Residents.

“I am most excited and very honored to be given the opportunity to represent ATI at the McDonalds All-American Games!” Samuel Almendarez, an ATC from ATI’s Illinois market, said when asked about the event prior to the big game. “Traveling for this game and being around the media and high-profile athletes resembles the experiences I had while working with the Chicago Sky. This will be a lot of fun!”

Continuing Education

Catch the McDonald’s All-American Games

March 26, 2026

When the nation’s best athletes perform, ATI is there to help keep them moving. Once again, ATI will serve as the official physical therapy provider for the McDonald’s All-American Games. Four of ATI’s Sports Medicine Athletic Trainers will travel to Phoenix for the big game and split their time between the all-star teams with help from three of ATI’s PT Sports Residents.

“I am most excited and very honored to be given the opportunity to represent ATI at the McDonalds All-American Games!” Samuel Almendarez, an ATC from ATI’s Illinois market, said when asked about the event. “Traveling for this game and being around the media and high-profile athletes resembles the experiences I had while working with the Chicago Sky. This will be a lot of fun!”

Continuing Education

Advancing MSK Care for All

March 26, 2026

The Institute for Musculoskeletal Advancement (iMSKA) continues to make a name for itself in the MSK space by going beyond the clinic and sports field setting to promote better outcomes for all patients. See below for some of the most recent publications available with help from ATI and iMSKA’s very own Athletic Trainers, get a sneak peek of new research already underway, and learn how you can get involved to make your own impact in the industry.

New Research & Recent Publications

New Research

A collaborative research project between iMSKA, ATI, AdventHealth Sports Med and Rehab, and Anderson University is generating exciting new insights into the medial elbow in collegiate softball players. Using musculoskeletal ultrasound, our team collected data across multiple universities in South Carolina to investigate whether the throwing arm in softball athletes undergoes anatomical adaptations similar to those documented in baseball players. As softball remains an underrepresented population in this area of research, we are especially eager to share this work with a series of publications currently in development.

Sports Medicine

Taking Care in Chicago Public Schools to a New…

March 26, 2026

For four years now, ATI Sports Medicine has partnered with Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Our 19 Athletic Trainers span the entire school district, providing athletic training services to 86 high schools and Chicago Public League athletics teams. These ATs bring to life a shared mission with CPS to provide community and equity-based healthcare for all students and families while achieving ATI’s own purpose in making every life an active life.

Their impact is tremendous: the majority of these schools have never had access to Athletic Trainers or their services before.

“Our ATs are providing care, building Sports Medicine programs, and educating our school communities on the type of care they can receive while working with us,” Sports Medicine Manager Eric Bucktold the RoundUp Team. “What this team continues to deliver is beyond expectations, and the results have been incredibly rewarding.”

Clinical Excellence

Caring for the Injured Worker 30 Years and Counting

March 5, 2026

In May, ATI Physical Therapy will celebrate 30 years in the healthcare industry. What has grown into a national practice offering a broad range of services began as a clinical practice based on treating the injured worker. To this day, ATI honors its roots by continuing its workers’ compensation and work hardening programs.

One recent success story comes from our Washington market, where a patient came in for rotator cuff repair physical therapy at our Gig Harbor clinic, followed by Work Hardening in Tacoma.

“The patient’s progress was not always linear,” Multisite Clinic Director Catch Hurst said, “but our team’s ability to think outside the box pushed him and provided a seamless transition to the work hardening program.”

On his first day back to work, the patient, who works as a delivery driver, completed 120 stops and delivered 147 packages. He then took the time to reach out to the ATI team with a recap of his day: “Today was a heavy day… but all that PT and WC made it easy to crush it. I have such gratitude to you all. “