Annette Sharp: Concern as James Symond hospitalised amid pandemic

The family of James Symond, nephew of ‘Aussie’ John, have closed ranks following word he was rushed to hospital after his fragile health deteriorated, writes Annette Sharp.

The family of James Symond, nephew of “Aussie” John Symond and former chief executive of Aussie Home Loans, closed ranks on Friday following word he was rushed to a Sydney hospital last weekend after his fragile health deteriorated.

Sources have informed this column that Symond, believed to be 49, was conveyed to St Vincent’s Hospital via ambulance on December 10.

James Symond, with wife Amelia Beau Symond on their wedding day in 2019, is believed to have been rushed to hospital.

The one-time mortgage broker has battled serious health issues for years after being diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2017, necessitating a bone marrow transfusion and stem cell transplant. He also has kidney disease that requires daily dialysis.

His resignation from Aussie in April stunned the industry after Symond was groomed for decades by his uncle “Aussie John” to succeed him at the helm of the lucrative family-built business.

A family spokesman declined to comment when contacted.

Additionally, they would neither confirm nor deny information to hand suggesting Symond’s wife of two years, Amelia Beau, returned home from Mexico on December 6 — four days prior to her husband’s hospitalisation — after travelling abroad to explore alternative treatments for breast cancer.

Symond, who has battled ill health for years, resigned as Aussie Home Loans CEO in April. Picture: Britta Campion

Mexico has long been a refuge for cancer patients seeking alternative therapy treatments.

In an unrelated case, self-described “wellness blogger” Jessica Ainscough died in 2015 after consulting Mexican alternative therapies practitioners who, among other treatments, prescribed “coffee enemas” for Ainscough’s cancer. She was 29 when she died.

One-time actor Amelia has previously published material to her Facebook page that might be considered sympathetic to Covid conspiracy theorists.

Amelia Beau Symond’s Facebook post.

Annette Sharp. The wife of James Symond's Facebook post, August 2020:

In one post, Amelia republishes the opinion of one Frank Ferrante (also the name of an American actor) who advocates humans “vibrate higher” to produce a frequency well above 25.5 hertz at which, he claims, the Covid virus dies.

“For humans with a higher vibration, the virus infection is a minor irritant that will soon go away,” writes Ferrante.

“The vibration of prayer alone goes from 120 to 350hz. So sing, laugh, love, meditate, play, give thanks and live! Let’s vibrate high!!!”

Amelia responded to Ferrante’s words with: “Fascinating, powerful and true.”

The post drew a rebuke from one Bruce Kaldor, who this column understands is a relative. Kaldor was openly sceptical.

“Perhaps a touch of realism and understanding of science might be more beneficial in understanding exactly what we are facing with this pandemic,” Kaldor wrote in August 2020.

Amelia married the wealthy Symond in an extravagant ceremony in March 2019.

The couple, who are parents to a two-year-old daughter, Stella, currently have plans with
Woollahra Council to build a $10 million mansion on a $13 million double block in Bellevue Hill.

‘SUSPICIOUS’ HYDRANT FLOOD AT ST VINCENT’S

Still with St Vincent’s, this column has learned the hospital is conducting an investigation into circumstances that saw a fire hydrant opened in the hospital’s clinic, causing damage to equipment.

A hospital spokesman confirmed the incident — which caused flooding on two floors — and revealed that it was being treated as suspicious.

The spokesman denied, however, that there was any evidence to hand to prove the hydrant was opened maliciously.

Hospital insiders have told this column the hydrant was opened in protest by an angry
anti-vaxxer who attended the clinic.

The hospital spokesman flatly refuted this claim.

“We recently had some flooding on the ground floor of St Vincent’s Clinic which subsequently caused some damage to our St Vincent’s Private Hospital Day Surgery Unit on the floor below,” hospital spokesman David Faktor said. “We are currently investigating.”

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