The Business Healthcare Society was founded by two esteemed and creative University of Ottawa students who both shared a passion for introducing the integration of business and healthcare to the Telfer community.
Two separate interviews were conducted with each of the BHS founders to get an idea of the story behind BHS; where it started, and where the founders are now!
Rakhi’s Interview
The first interview was conducted with Rakhi Gupta, who is currently in her first-year of law school at the University of Ottawa.
Rakhi started first-year extremely excited to begin her university experience and socialize. She noticed that most Telfer students were very interactive and clubs were of great importance in the business community.
After a few months of student life, the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the social experience came to an unfortunate end. As students grappled with the shift in learning, both Rakhi and Bhanuja Rastogi had noticed something interesting about the line-up of clubs that Telfer advertised. Although there was a wide range of options, there was no club directly dedicated to healthcare analytics.
At the time, this was a new specialization option that was offered. This sparked a newfound interest in the integration of business and healthcare.
“Getting the club up and running was definitely a struggle. I didn’t realize that BHS would become such a massive part of my undergrad experience,” Rakhi said.
When asked about some of the specific challenges that were faced, Rakhi recalled a few key aspects that aligned with the pandemic.
“Lack of engagement and promoting the club was a major issue. We were relying almost fully on social media and just doing our best to spread the word virtually.”
By using tactics such as cold emailing, and reaching out to professors, the club was able to form a solid foundation and an ever so growing list of general members.
The Business Healthcare Society has come a long way since the pandemic times. In the 2021-2022 school year, Rakhi emphasized that one of the most gratifying parts of the club was winning the Business in Innovation Award.
“It was so fulfilling to see that our hard work had paid off. I knew that everything would be worth it in the end.”
Rakhi feels that she has grown a lot as a leader, and as a person, following her leadership experience at BHS. Even though the experience was difficult at times, she doesn’t regret her time spent on BHS for a second.
Bhanuja’s Interview
Our other co-founder of BHS is Bhanuja Rastogi, a 4th-year Finance student.
Bhanuja has completed three separate co-op terms at major accounting firms in Ottawa. She has always been an extremely dedicated worker and student, and remains passionate about her roles in various Telfer clubs.
“In highschool, I was having a hard time deciding which major I wanted to pursue: engineering, or business. I ended up choosing business, but I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill my love for the sciences throughout my undergrad.”
BHS allowed Bhanuja to discover the vital relation between business and healthcare, and pursue the process of educating other Telfer students about this integration.
“Being able to open other people’s eyes to this industry has easily been one of the best parts of BHS. We’ve helped newer students discover potential career paths - it’s great to be contributing to the Telfer community in such a positive way.”
Bhanuja mentioned that BHS allowed her leadership and organization skills to prosper. Specifically, she learned the importance of delegation as a leader. The executive members of BHS, in the early months, were friends; more accurately, other Telfer students.
“It was important to all of us that school and friendship came first. As much as we enjoyed contributing to the growth of BHS, it was a volunteer position and it was important to keep our priorities in the right order.”
Seeing the growth of BHS has been one of the most gratifying experiences for Bhanuja as a co-president and founder of the club.
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