As a former senior consultant surgeon at Middlemore Hospital and visiting specialist at Starship Children’s, National Women’s, and Auckland public hospitals, Tristan specialises in facial restoration, body contouring, complex reconstruction, and paediatric plastic surgery. He also offers a comprehensive range of breast and hand procedures. Today, he offers aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery in Auckland and Tauranga.

Born in Canada, Tristan completed his medical and surgical degrees in South Africa before undertaking advanced postgraduate fellowships at two renowned North American institutions: Emory University–affiliated hospitals in Atlanta and the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. His training included advanced techniques in body contouring, facial rejuvenation, microsurgical reconstruction, paediatric and craniofacial surgery, and the treatment of congenital malformations such as vascular anomalies and cleft lip and palate. At Emory, he also contributed to the development and teaching of endoscopic facial rejuvenation techniques.

In 1997, he was invited to join the senior staff of the Plastic Surgery Unit at Middlemore Hospital, where he focused on cleft lip and palate surgery and chest wall reconstruction.

Tristan has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. Despite the breadth of his training and experience, a central passion remains facial restoration following skin cancer, injury, or ageing. He travels annually to developing countries in South-East Asia, providing pro bono cleft care for underprivileged children through Operation Restore Hope NZ. He also donates his time and expertise to the Auckland Regional Charitable Hospital.