Stephen Clark Explores the Power of Listening in APTA Magazine
In the October 2025 issue of APTA Magazine, Stephen Clark, PT, DPT, ATC, Chief Clinical Officer at Confluent Health, shares a powerful perspective on pain, communication, and what truly drives recovery. In his Viewpoints article, Stephen reflects on his participation in Pain, Misunderstood and the role pain education, empathy, and language play in transforming outcomes for people living with chronic pain. Drawing from […]
Confluent Health, Evidence In Motion Leaders Featured on OUCH! Talking Pain with USASP Podcast
At Confluent Health, we are committed to reshaping the way the world understands and treats pain. That’s why we’re proud to share that two of our leaders from Evidence In Motion (EIM) — Dr. Adriaan Louw, PT, PhD, and Dr. Colleen Louw, PT, MEd, PhD — were recently featured on the latest episode of OUCH! […]
APTQI Shines a Light on “Pain, Misunderstood” in New Feature
We’re proud to share that our groundbreaking documentary Pain, Misunderstood was recently featured by the Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI) in a new blog post highlighting the film’s role in reshaping the conversation around chronic pain. The APTQI feature explores how Pain, Misunderstood brings together clinicians, patients, and researchers to demystify what […]
Beyond Pills and Procedures: A Better Way to Treat Chronic Pain
Treating Pain with Insight, Not Just Interventions In a world of quick fixes, it’s time we asked a better question: what if healing chronic pain doesn’t start with medication, but with understanding? The Problem with the Old Model Since the age of bloodletting, we have treated pain like a mechanical problem. Pain was something to […]
Inside the Making of Pain, Misunderstood: Why We Had to Tell This Story
Every day, millions of people are living with pain that no scan can explain. They’re told it’s in their head. They’re handed pills. They’re left to navigate a healthcare system that often misunderstands them or ignores them altogether. That’s why we made this film. Why Pain, Misunderstood Had to Be Made Pain, Misunderstood is more […]
Why We’ve Been Getting Pain Wrong—And What Clinicians Can Do About It
Rethinking Pain: A Call to Clinicians For decades, chronic pain has been treated as a symptom to silence. But the latest research in pain neuroscience reveals a very different truth: pain is not just in the body, it’s in the brain. And understanding that changes everything. The Myth of Damage = Pain Pain is a […]
Confluent Health Releases Groundbreaking Documentary to Tackle America’s Chronic Pain Crisis
Pain, Misunderstood spotlights America’s outdated pain treatment with a national push for smarter MSK care LOUISVILLE, KY – June 2, 2025 – What if everything we thought we knew about pain was wrong? Today, more than 1 in 5 Americans live with chronic pain, and too often, their pain is met with silence, surgery, or […]
Dr. Stephen Clark Featured in Fox News: The Complexity of Chronic Back Pain & Why a PT-First Approach Matters
Chronic back pain is one of the most common and debilitating health conditions in America, affecting an estimated 16 million adults. A recent study published in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine has shed light on a troubling reality: many widely used treatments for lower back pain provide little to no relief. According to the study, only about […]
Why Physical Therapy Must Be Recognized as Essential Care
Physical therapy is more than just a tool for recovery, it is a fundamental component of comprehensive healthcare. For millions of Americans, access to physical therapy (PT) can mean the difference between managing pain effectively and suffering from long-term disability. Despite its proven benefits, PT is at times seen as an optional service or one […]
Back Pain – Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment
Back pain is one of the most common medical issues reported globally and can manifest as dull, aching, or sharp pain. According to a 2022 Statista study, 28% of adults in the United States report experiencing chronic low back pain or sciatica. The majority of those who reported this pain, 35%, fell between 50 and […]