Des graduated from the University with a BSc in 1975, and an MBChB in 1978. He continued his education with a PhD at the University of Sydney, which he completed while he was serving with the Australian Navy. During this time he emerged as dux of the Royal Navy Submarine School Officers' Course and was named Royal Australian Navy Officer of the Year.
On returning to New Zealand, Des was Director of Medical Services for the Royal New Zealand Navy from 1989 to 1995.
In 1995 he joined the staff of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences as head of the Department of Occupational Medicine. Des has held a Professorial Chair in Medicine at The University of Auckland since 2000. He is a member of the Liggins Institute and has been Director of Admissions for Medical Programmes from 2003.
In October 2005 Des was appointed as Head of the School of Medicine, becoming in the process the first alumnus to head up one of the five schools the faculty represents.
Through his academic career he has had 218 papers published internationally and has made 36 keynote presentations to international conferences, most in his specialist field of diving and hyperbaric medicine.
