Nassib Chamoun
Nassib Chamoun almost opted out of co-op at Northeastern, but it's a good thing he didn't. His co-op at Harvard School of Public Health's Lown Laboratory would later open the door to the opportunity to start a business that would revolutionize the care of patients under anesthesia. After graduating from Northeastern and getting a master's from Boston University, he was able to return to Lown Lab to conduct PhD research in cardiac electrophysiology. It was there that he became interested in what makes the brain tick while under anesthesia.
With the encouragement of fellow Northeastern grad, the late Charles Zraket, E '51, H '88, Chamoun left academia in 1985 at the age of twenty-five to found Aspect Medical Systems. The company would eventually produce the technology - trademarked as BIS - used to monitor the brain activity of patients during surgery. Just two decades later, about half of all U.S. operating rooms have adopted this brain-monitoring technology, and it’s used in more than 160 countries.
As Chamoun built his company, he maintained close ties with Northeastern. In fact, Northeastern grad Philip Devlin, E '79, ME '83, joined Aspect in 1990 and now serves as vice president and general manager of neuroscience. Chamoun also frequently taps the co-op program for employees.
A willingness to embrace setbacks is what keeps Chamoun on course. "Success is very bad if you don't rein it in and put it in perspective. In fact, I think failure is a greater motivator and driver of focus for me and this company, in trying to understand what went wrong. And truly learning from it to do better."
