I became the statistic no one wanted to talk about.

Data drives everything in my world, it's board meetings, it's business strategies, healthcare decisions; statistics are the heart of every "important" discussion. The numbers behind office visits, collections, and insurance claims all tell a critical story that impacts how our businesses operate. But today, I want to share a different kind of number, a different statistic—mine: Ellen Bowyer, Patient ID 55810.

Infomercials, those late-night promises of miracle products that could fix your life for just a few simple payments of $29.95. They sold hope—a promise that a solution was just around the corner. It’s a mentality many healthcare professionals inadvertently adopt, offering illusory hope. And people like me are often the ones caught in that cycle: I want to believe.

For over 18 years, I’ve endured severe, chronic back pain and undergone a multitude of procedures, including major surgeries and both holistic and conventional treatments. After years of therapy, it often felt like my vagus nerve simply refused to cooperate...or even show up to the party.  Now, I carry a spinal fusion with a metal cage and a spinal cord stimulator. Despite exploring countless options—Eastern and Western medicine, including ongoing Chiropractic care—pain remains an constant unwelcome shadow in my life.

I became the statistic no one wanted to talk about: the failed case. A patient who, despite endless treatments and theories, remained in pain.  I refused to believe in quick fixes or miracle cures.  I had a choice: to either fall into despair or protect my remaining glimmer of hope. Over time,  I listened to new ideas and treatments, but became fiercely protective of that remaining light, refusing to extinguish it over an infomercial promise.

Research studies can show us the truth behind treatments, yet the benefits of Chiropractic care are often overlooked or undervalued compared to something as simple as a study about a sleeping pill or an E. coli outbreak. Numbers don’t lie, and data can help provide hope just as much as it can protect people from unrealistic expectations, a guardian of hope.   This why I am so passionate about the role of data in healthcare, and one of the reasons I love the company I work for.


One of ChiroHD’s core values is the commitment to real data, real research, and real results.  We are committed to large-scale research in the Chiropractic space. One of our research initatives is to utilize our relationship with Life University to support research that advances the Chiropractic profession, and to provide meaningful data to support the efficacy of Chiropractic care.  Hope, but also a guardian of truth. We believe that by investing in research, we can help change the perception of Chiropractic care and improve access to it.

So, while I work behind my desk and support our offices, you are out there changing the lives of millions of individuals—millions of statistics like mine.  And as I rewrite my own narrative, I get to help provide the statistics that offer a storyline for others.

When we treat people holistically—inside and out, left to right, up and down—we can’t rely on small-scale research to make a big impact. If we want to truly treat patients as whole beings, we need to analyze their data with a wide, detailed lens. That’s the opportunity we are trying to forge with ChiroHD. As an EHR, and practice management platform we have the ability to partner with research labs and you, the healthcare provider, to fuel large-scale research.

This large-scale research isn’t just numbers—it’s stories, it's lives. Each statistic is a real person with a real journey. And when I think about the stories behind the numbers, it gives me hope. It reminds me that everyone’s story deserves a rewrite, a new chapter. For years, I shielded myself from false hope as a form of self-preservation, but now, I can pick up my pen and write a new chapter.   By helping to gather data, we are not just contributing to research, we are offering others the opportunity to have hope—real, data-driven hope.

And that is a statistic I’m proud to be part of.