Staff Bios
Andrew graduated from Otago University of Medicine in 2009. He moved to Hamilton after working a couple of years in Palmerston North Hospital.
He worked a few years in Waikato Hospital mainly in the medical fields, before becoming a GP. He enjoyed this transition very much, and thinks it is the best decision he has made in his medical career.
Originally from Malaysia, Andrew is now married and has settled down in Hamilton.
Asit completed his medical training in India and worked in the Middle East before moving to New Zealand in 1998. He joined Hamilton East Medical Centre in 2005 after a few years as Registrar in ENT at Waikato Hospital.
Asit has special interests in ear, nose and throat (ENT) and minor surgery.
A good listener, Asit enjoys the scope of general practice and the opportunity it provides to know the patients and help them remain well in all aspects of life.
Bala qualified in India (1987) and worked in the United Kingdom as a specialist (Obstetrics and Gynaecology). He became interested in general practice with the challenge it provides, and retrained in 2000 and worked as a GP until 2005. Bala moved to New Zealand in 2005 and worked in Putaruru and Te Awamutu before moving to Hamilton East Medical Centre. Bala enjoys preventative medicine, managing elderly patients, women and children’s health. He was involved in teaching medical students, interns and registrars. Bala is married and has two children. He enjoys tramping, sailing, cooking, gardening and playing tennis in his spare time.
Christina was born and raised in Hamilton. She originally trained as a clinical dietitian and worked in Auckland and Whanganui before returning to Otago University to complete her medical degree.
Christina graduated in 2019 and worked at Waikato Hospital before beginning her training in General Practice.
She has a special interest in children’s health after completing a diploma in this field. Outside of work Christina enjoys cooking (and eating!), reading and gardening.
Originally from the UK, Dean graduated from The University of Manchester in 2015. He spent time working in England before moving to New Zealand to work at Waikato Hospital.
At the hospital, he worked in both medical and surgical fields, predominantly in general medicine and ENT. In 2020 he returned to the UK to undertake GP training (MRCGP). Having completed his UK training, Dean has since relocated back to Hamilton to settle and continue his career.
Dr Denzil Berchmans - General Practitioner
After graduating from St. John's Medical School, Bangalore, India, Denzil worked and studied for 8 years in Singapore and achieved his degree in Family Medicine from National University of Singapore.
He worked for 4 and a half years in Paediatric Emergency before becoming a general practitioner.
In 2021 Denzil, his wife and 2 young children moved to New Zealand and spent 2 and half years in Napier before moving up to the Waikato.
He has special interests in preventative medicine, public health, paediatrics and sports medicine (which he is working towards a degree in).
In his spare time, he loves playing squash, cricket and hockey, His 2 very young children also keep him very busy.
Dr Emma Aldridge - General Practitioner
Ko Aoraki te maunga, ko Waitaki te awa, ko Takitimu te waka, ko Ngāi Tahu te iwi, ko Ngāi Tūāhuriri te hapū, ko Tuahiwi te marae.
Emma graduated from the University of Auckland in 2015. She is of Māori/NZ European descent and belongs to the Ngāi Tahu iwi. Emma worked for several years at Taranaki Base Hospital and Waikato Hospital before beginning her GP training in Wellington in 2021. In 2023, Emma moved to Hamilton and joined Hamilton East Medical Centre, where she continues to work towards gaining her fellowship with the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners.Her special interests include Māori health and equity. Outside of work she enjoys travel, hiking, and spending time with whānau.
Manisha hails from India and did her medical training in India. She and her family have been in New Zealand since 1994 and in Hamilton since 1996.
She has been working as a general practitioner since 1999 and she has been with Hamilton East Medical Centre since 2006. She is a fellow of Royal NZ College of GP and has postgraduate qualifications in travel medicine. She provides up to date and relevant advice to travellers. She also has particular interest in women’s health, adolescent, teenagers and children.
She enjoys holistic family medicine and other than medicine when time permits, she enjoys cooking, reading and travelling.
Dr Manju Jagadeesan - General Practitioner
After completing her primary medical training in India, Manju moved to the UK in 2002. She completed her postgraduate training in London and qualified as a GP in 2010. Since then she has worked in various practices across England. She has post graduate qualifications in dermatology, women’s health and child health nevertheless she enjoys all aspects of general practice. She moved to NZ in 2018 along with her family and loves nature trails, enjoys painting in different media in her free time.
Nishkala was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka and has lived in New Zealand since 1988. She graduated from the University of Auckland in 1994.
Nishkala has done postgraduate training and obtained diplomas in Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology. She is a Fellow of New Zealand Royal College of General Practitioners and has been part of the Hamilton East Medical Centre team since 2001.
Nishkala’s special interests are in women’s health, child health, minor surgery and preventative medicine.
Her personal interests include music, reading, gardening, dressmaking, knitting, sports, cooking, travel, astrology and cultural activities – when time permits!
Originally from the UK Richard graduated from Leicester University in in 2011. After several years working in primary care in the UK Richard migrated to NZ in 2018 and worked as a GP in Whangarei. Richard moved to Hamilton in early 2021 with his wife, who is training in Anaesthetics at Waikato Hospital.
Simon graduated from Sheffield University Medical School in 2005 and then qualified as a GP in 2013. He spent 16 years working as a doctor with the UK Armed Forces which involved overseas and UK based work. In 2019 he moved into the NHS and worked as a GP near Bath. He has also worked extensively with professional sports teams including 5 years with Bath Rugby, Wales international football and the 2016 UK Invictus Games team. His specialist interest areas are sports and exercise medicine and men’s health.
He moved to New Zealand in October 2022 with his wife and 2 young children. Away from work he enjoys all sports but especially rugby, cycling and football. He also has a passion for cooking and travelling.
Dr Tamatoa Blaiklock - General Practitioner
Tama grew up in Auckland and graduated from the Auckland Medical School in 2010. He is of Samoan/NZ European decent and has his families chief title, Vui, from his mother’s village in Samoa. He did his hospital training at Waikato Hospital where he worked for 18 months as a plastic surgery registrar. He is a fellow of the New Zealand College of General Practitioners.
His special interests include skin cancer surgery, paediatric medicine, and medical education.
Tama is married to a physiotherapist, has three young boys and a daughter.
His hobbies include weight lifting, guitar, and more recently golf (although at times this is more of a frustration than a hobby).
Zig has been in general practice for over 20 years. He qualified in Otago and has worked in Hamilton since. Married to Helen, he has two children. His interests in general practice include sports medicine, dive medicine, adolescent and geriatric medicine, minor surgery and all other facets of general medical practice.
His work has included being the doctor to the Junior All Blacks, the Maori All Blacks, the Chiefs and the Waikato Rugby Teams.
16 Beale Street, Hamilton East, Hamilton 3210
PO Box 4096, Hamilton 3247
EDI : hamestmc
Phone: 07 839 1232
Fax: 07 834 0928
Email: hemc@hemc.co.nz
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