Acadian Ambulance Service has been ranked No. 18 on Inc. Magazine’s inaugural Hire Power award list. The list, featuring 100 businesses nationwide, honors companies that have helped rebuild the economy by creating a substantial number of jobs over the past few years.

Since 2008, Acadian has added 778 jobs, bringing its employee total to more than 3,800. The company ranked fourth in the health-care industry for job creation.

Acadian’s employee growth is due in part to its continued growth in Texas. The company now serves 33 Texas counties, including Bexar, Live Oak, Medina, Travis, Dallas and Harris.

“The heart of Acadian has always been the employee-owners,” said Richard Zuschlag, CEO and chairman of Acadian. “We succeed as a company because of the dedication, motivation and participation of our people.”

Acadian, which also serves Louisiana and Mississippi, was established in 1971 and is owned by its employees through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan. It is nationally accredited, one of only 150 ambulance services in the nation and one of six in Texas to have earned the prestigious designation.