About Chad Elms, Founder and CEO of The Back University
After graduating physical therapy school in 2000 from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio with a Master's Degree in Physical Therapy, Chad went on to pursue an advanced certification in a three year residency program with a focus on Manual Therapy (using hands-on techniques to change the way the body functions) and Orthopedics.
After successfully completing his Manual Therapy Residency program, Chad became a Fellow in the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapists, an honor shared only by about 400 other therapists in the nation. At that time he also tested for, and successfully passed, his Orthopedic Clinical Specialist examination, to give him the distinguished honor of being an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, a certification shared by about 3% of the physical therapists in the nation.
In 2002, Chad decided to pursue the dream of opening his own outpatient physical therapy practice in Helotes, Texas. The practice quickly flourished developing a good reputation for providing "Hands on Care for Faster Results."
When Chad first started treating patients as a physical therapist, he had two big revelations. First, many of the patients coming to physical therapy were seeking relief from back pain. In fact, in his private practice, over 50% of the patients were seeking relief for lower back pain. Though this was a little surprising at first, it made sense given the fact that low back pain is the second most common reason people visit their physicians—second only to the common cold.
The second revelation he had was many of the patients that came in for back pain were discouraged by the fact that they had tried a number of things to get rid of that pain but were still, unfortunately, going through the revolving door of the medical system seeking relief from their pain. The more Chad looked into this, the more he felt it was because most of our treatments for back pain are geared toward getting rid of the symptom of back pain itself, not on treating what caused the pain in the first place.
He also noticed that the majority of patients coming in for back pain achieved great results with some basic instruction in a proper exercise regimen, instruction in proper postures, and in moving correctly during daily activities.
It became evident to Chad that people need someone to do the research on back pain for them. People need someone to show them what to do and why. Most importantly, people need to be educated and knowledgeable on what causes back pain, and on how to prevent it, in order to enable them to take control of their life.
In 2008, Chad founded The Back University at www.TheBackUniversity.com to better educate the public on how to eliminate and prevent the recurrence of back pain, as well as to change the way that back pain is treated in our society. One of the main goals of The Back University is to empower people to take control of their back pain safely and effectively. He also authored the book, 7 Secrets to Eliminating Low Back Pain: The Safe and Effective Step-by-Step Guide, in order to give the public a comprehensive, innovative system for treating back pain.
In 2010, Chad created The Back University’s Back Pain blog for mysanantonio.com where he shares timely and important information and instructional videos about back health. Chad has been featured in numerous media stories on radio, in print, as well as on CBS and NBC television stations.
Today, Chad is the co-owner of four outpatient physical therapy clinics around San Antonio, Texas and the manager of a fifth clinic owned by a separate group of investors. His experience and knowledge have allowed him to work with a variety of patients throughout the San Antonio community to include players from the NBA's San Antonio Spurs, the Chicago White Sox, and Olympic athletes. He has also worked with PGA golfers, professional boxers, professional soccer players, been on the therapy team for the San Antonio Ballet, and has worked with numerous collegiate and high school athletes. Additionally, he has worked with a multitude of other patients of all ages and activity levels in the community.
As a result of the tremendous expansion of his businesses, Chad now spends much of his time working with his physical therapy team to ensure that each location still provides the high quality of care its clients have come to expect.
When he is not spending his time working in and on his businesses and with patients, he enjoys time with his wife and young son, working out, being outdoors, as well as participating in ministry work through his church.