A Mayday Hospital health manager is being paid £60,000 a year to work from her new home 3,000 miles away in Montreal, Canada.

Janet Clark moved across the Atlantic 18 months ago after meeting her new partner and falling pregnant with her first child, but she was allowed to keep her senior position at the Croydon hospital.

The head of strategy is responsible for helping GPs with their referral services.

Mayday Hospital refused to comment on the arrangement, but said Mrs Clark had not had to return to the UK since she left the country.

She has been working remotely from a computer in her spare room.

London campaigner Geoff Martin, from Health Emergency, said: “It is just extraordinary the kind of easy ride very senior managers in the NHS get.

“What sort of message does this send out to those staff slogging their guts out in accident and emergency on a Friday and Saturday night who are under massive pressure to get their job done when a manager is working out of her spare room abroad?”

Malcolm Felberg, 76 , chairman of Croydon Link Hospital Group – a patients’ organisation, said: “I think it is appalling. How can a manager run things from Canada?

“She should be out talking to people in Croydon not doing things by email.

“Serious questions need to be asked. If she has to fly back to the UK, who will pay for her airfare?”

According to a national newspaper, Mrs Clark, 40, moved to Canada after the break down of her three-year marriage. She is with a new partner Gilles Blanchet who, the newspaper reported, she met on the internet.

She told the NHS trust she wanted to move to Canada in late 2008 and agreed to work for Mayday Hospital remotely and receive maternity pay.

In addition to her £60,000 salary, she also received £5,000 weighting as Mayday is based in outer London.

She emailed colleagues about her IT issues.

She said: “I finally got connected to the Mayday system after about two weeks with the IT department, which means I am able to do some work, have my desk set up in the spare room.

“I am actually enjoying having something to do as I get a bit bored otherwise. There is only so much spending and driving you can do.”

After giving birth to a daughter, Mrs Clark returned from her maternity leave and resigned from the hospital.

She is working out her notice period.

A Mayday Hospital spokeswoman said: “This is a contractual matter between employer and employee and we do not comment on such confidential issues.”