Dr. Eileen de Villa, Toronto’s public health chief, taking leave of absence for medical treatment
TORONTO — Dr. Eileen de Villa is taking a leave of absence and returning to the office of the city’s chief medical health officer, to “look after the family.”
Eileen de Villa
Eileen de Villa announced today that she is taking a leave of absence for medical reasons.
This is a change from her previous comment on April 6 that said she would be away from City Hall “for some time.”
“In the meantime, I will continue to support our City Council, working for the best interests of Toronto for the benefit of the residents of Toronto.”
The City of Toronto said in a statement today that de Villa will be “working part time” as a consultant for the city to support its staff, and is not in any official capacity.
This means de Villa, who is a doctor of family medicine and a medical expert, will look after family responsibilities and medical affairs.
“In her absence, I plan to be available on the front line of the city to help our staff address complex issues,” said de Villa, who will be based at the City Hall Annex (City Hall North) in addition to her role with the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
“I am grateful to the Chief Medical Officer (Dr. Eileen de Villa) to have this support,” said Toronto Mayor John Tory in a statement. “I take the leave of absence very seriously given my commitment to ensuring that Toronto is doing everything possible to reduce the spread of the virus.”
This is the second time de Villa has taken a leave of absence to take care of family obligations, according to her City of Toronto bio, which also lists her work at a clinic.
In late March, de Villa, then the director of the Toronto District Health Authority, wrote an op-ed for the Star that she would be taking a leave to take care of “family care.”
“I am not asking for help from City Hall, but I am asking for help from my own family medical practice.”
She elaborated on her blog post in a statement
