J. Thomas Cross, Jr., MD, MPH, FAAP, FACP

Dr. Tommy Cross is a former Med-Peds residency director (8 years) and a former Director of Education for MedStudy Corporation, a medical education company. In his 10 years at MedStudy, Dr. Cross spearheaded the development of the Pediatrics division while also managing major components of the Internal Medicine division. In this role he developed, wrote, reviewed and edited education content for both IM and Peds core curricula, Q&A self-testing products, and flash cards targeted to niche learning. He also directed and served as presenter in multi-day live courses each year (with schedules varying from 3½ to 9 days). These included courses focused exclusively on Board recertification, for which he and Candace Walkley, MD (now his colleague at A-Cross Medicine Reviews) were the original developers. Drs. Cross and Walkley were the sole presenters at these courses, which covered 12 subspecialty areas. Attesting to their popularity, the courses often sold out far ahead of start dates. Dr. Cross is a graduate of Tulane Medical School and has previously served as associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. He is a past president of the AAP's Section on Med-Peds, a past president of the National Internal Medicine-Pediatrics Program Directors’ Association, and a former member of the Clinical Efficacy Subcommittee of the ACP, which writes and directs the formulation of ACP guidelines for Internists. Dr. Cross is licensed to practice medicine in Louisiana and Colorado and is board certified by the American Board of Medical Specialties in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Adult Infectious Diseases, and Pediatric Infectious Diseases.

Candace Walkley, MD

Dr. Candace Walkley (previous name: Dr. Candace Mitchell) is a former assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and a former Associate Director of Education for MedStudy Corporation. In her 6 years at MedStudy, Dr. Walkley joined with Dr. Cross as original developer of courses focused exclusively on Board recertification, for which she and he were the only presenters covering 12 subspecialty areas. She was also the originator and developer of Core Scripts^® Flash Cards, a specialty learning tool to help improve diagnostic skills and compile more thorough patient signs and symptoms evaluations. Dr. Walkley went on to spearhead development and create content for MedStudy’s first two exclusively online interactive learning modules titled Heart Signs™ and Skin Signs™. These teaching tools utilize graphics, sound, text, and self-quizzing to help learners identify important heart sounds and dermatologic conditions. Lastly, Dr. Walkley wrote, reviewed, and edited selected content for MedStudy core curricula and Q&As, made selected presentations at other MedStudy live courses, and also organized and guided attendee study groups at these events. Dr. Walkley is a graduate of the University of Texas Southwestern Health Sciences Center and is a former junior/senior Medical Clerkship Director and ACGME Subspecialty Education Coordinator for infectious diseases. She is a recipient of the Joseph E. Lowenstein award for excellence in teaching. Dr. Walkley is licensed to practice medicine in Louisiana and is board certified by the American Board of Medical Specialties in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Adult Infectious Diseases.

What attendees have said about courses given by Drs. Cross and Walkley

“Without reservation, I would recommend this course to my colleagues…a truly good way to recharge the batteries. It was an outstanding educational experience taught by two excellent teachers of medicine.”

“Fantastic course… Focused, current, and easy to get through.”

 “The course helped consolidate material and narrowed my focus to what was important…”

 “The best investment I made in the last 10 years. The course helped me concentrate on difficult-to-remember academic questions. It also made me feel secure that I did not miss any changes in guidelines.”

“…the speakers are awesome. I have been recommending it to everybody.”

“As a physician who tends to attend regular updates, for me the course highlighted the key guideline changes that have occurred since I last did an extensive medical review.”

 “I love the no-nonsense approach to get to the core of the matter!”

 “…I had to relearn medicine over again as there were many new things I was not aware of, subtle changes in treatment guidelines, big changes in treatment guidelines…”

 “I was able to educate a patient better in latest medical management.”

 “I teach Residents and Students and the well-organized manner in which the material is conveyed has helped me to teach better differential diagnosis.”

 “It was excellent, entertaining and relevant.”

 “Outstanding course.  I've already recommended it to my colleagues… I'll do this course again if Tommy and Candace are still willing and able!”

 “Keep your sense of humor. It helps. :)!”

 “It was a great educational opportunity, great overall review. I think one should do that every 5 years for a review of medicine”

 “…The speakers were excellent, they never lost our attention.”

 “In my past "live course" experiences, each topic is presented by a different presenter.  If you have a presenter that is "dry," it makes you lose contact with the presentation and thus the information needed to learn. I found the consistency of two GREAT presenters to be the most beneficial aspect of the program.”