1991 OAM for services to Australian Military History, 2001 Centenary medal for services to Veterans' Community, 2006 Member of the Order of Australia for services to military history and dentistry.
From the Vice-Chancellor's introduction before Ross spoke to graduating dental students in 2017
'Dr Ross Bastiaan is a periodontist who has been in private practice in Melbourne since 1978. He has dental Masters degrees from Melbourne and London Universities, has contributed to three dental textbooks and published over 25 scientific articles. He has served as President of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons and taught for several years at the Dental School, University of Melbourne. Dr Bastiaan was the Forensic Dentist to the Melbourne Coroner and Homicide Squad, Victorian Police Force, for 10 years from 1981. He is currently a serving Colonel in the Army Reserve, Royal Australian Army Dental Corps, and was the honorary dentist to the Governor General of Australia. Australian Military History has been his long-term interest and since 1990 he has personally (sculpted and )placed around the world over 270 multi-lingual, large bronze commemorative interpretative plaques, mainly telling of Australia’s past military & social history. He has written three books on the First and Second World Wars.