Hospital CEO admits to trips to U.S. since March

London, Ont. exec sees family five times

LONDON, ONT. • The chief executive of the hospital network in London, Ont., travelled to the U.S. five times since the start of the pandemic, including over the Christmas break, the latest addition to a growing list of health and political leaders who have gone abroad during the COVID-19 crisis.

Paul Woods, a Canadian citizen with green-card status in America, has travelled to see his immediate family in the U.S. five times since last March, the hospital said in a statement Friday. He lives alone in Canada, the hospital said.

His most recent trip to the U.S. was Dec. 19 to 25.

“I will no longer be travelling until federal restrictions limiting non-essential travel are lifted. Hindsight will always be 20/20 and I cannot turn back the clock,” Woods said in a statement Friday.

“What I can do is take accountability for my decision to visit with immediate family out-of-country and fully apologize. Please accept my deepest regret for my actions.”

The federal government has been advising Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside of the country since March 2020.

London Health Sciences Centre says Woods will keep his job, which pays $605,000 in annual salary and benefits.

Woods, the hospital network said, followed public health guidelines and mitigated risk by driving across the U.S. border, staying in one place while abroad and quarantining upon his return.

The exact location where Woods visited in the U.S. was not released.

“The Board of Directors is aware Dr. Woods continued to travel for personal reasons given the separation from his immediate family and the board supports his continued leadership of LHSC,” board chair Amy Walby said in a statement.

“At a meeting of the elected Directors of the Board, Dr. Paul Woods received the support of the board, and we believe it is in the best interest of the system to maintain stability at the CEO level at such tumultuous times.”

No other members of LHSC’s senior leadership team travelled abroad during the December break, the hospital said in a statement.

Woods has been at the helm of LHSC for about three years. Before joining LHSC, Woods was senior vice-president at Trinity Health in Livonia, Mich.

Woods joins a growing list of leaders and politicians who have travelled abroad despite the pandemic. Ontario Finance Minister Rod Phillips was stripped of his cabinet post for a winter vacation in St. Barts.

The head of the St. Joseph’s Health System in Hamilton and Niagara Health was forced from some of his roles after vacationing in the Dominican Republic last month.