Catherine Porter Rayburn

Catherine personifies the idea of life-long learning. She has had a career with many facets through which the business BeMindFULL was created and includes:

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• Empowering healthcare workers to embrace their chosen career

• Teaching stress-reduction techniques to the preschool age group

• Guiding/supporting families experiencing the transition of a loved one.

 

In her free time, Catherine loves to try new recipes using fresh herbs from her garden, read books with interesting titles, and travel to learn about cultures different from her own. She has participated in medical missions in Panama, Guatemala, Mexico, and community-based clinics. Read more about her career journey below:

Degrees:

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)

• Masters of Nursing Science with an emphasis on teaching (MNSc0

• Doctorate of Nursing Practice with an emphasis on Nursing Leadership (DNP)

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Trainings:

• Koru Mindfulness

• Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

• Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) coursework

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Certifications:

• NLP Practitioner

• Ordained Minister

• Certified End of Life Doula (from Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont)

• Lay Minister with the Community of Hope (teach Mindfulness/Prayer section of training)

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Career Journey:

• Neuro Intensive Care Unit in Memphis, TX

• Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, TN

• Administered pain management, enteral/parenteral nutrition, chemotherapy, and antibiotic therapy with I Care of Arkansas

• Wrote pediatric protocols to develop I Care for Kids

• Asst. Director of Pediatrics at Presbyterian Hospital of Plano

• SMS Implementation team with Presbyterian Healthcare Systems

• Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit at Arkansas Children’s Hospital

• Psychiatric nurse at Rivendell Behavioral Health

• Outpatient Palliative Care Nurse at University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences

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Healthcare Workers

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Catherine will train healthcare workers on stress- reduction and communication
strategies—including but not limited to breathing/meditative practice, mindfulness, and

neurolinguistic programming techniques.

Education will be customized based on the audiences’ experience and needs’ assessment. CEUs
will be available for participants in accordance with the Accrediting Council for Continuing

Education and Training (ACCET) standards

Catherine will re-energize healthcare workers to love what they do. In the post COVID world of
healthcare, it is exhausting. She can help staff cope with the demanding patients and educate
them how to communicate more effectively with patients, coworkers, and family members.
Catherine is available for onsite trainings, forums, shift-work training, and national conferences.

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Pre-school Age Kiddos

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We all know the stress as a child… make good grades, build healthy friendships, and juggle extra-curricular activities. As a psychiatric nurse for children and adults, Catherine sees patients who have never developed effective coping skills. Preschool age is targets, so the skills can be learned, practiced, and incorporated as a lifelong skill. Catherine has the training and expertise to teach preschool age kids how to manage stress through stress-reduction techniques like meditation and mindfulness. These techniques may help improve grades/confidence and reduce effects of bullying. 

 

Life Transitions

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Catherine specializes in helping families facilitate end of life transitions by providing hands-on logistical, emotional, and spiritual support. This position is formally known as an End of Life Doula and differs from Hospice that provides medical evaluations, services, and medications for comfort and pain. This is a key factor for families who are dealing with a sick loved one at the end of their life. She also provides follow-up grief support and education.

 

Catherine has experienced death and dying personally and professionally. Her father passed on shortly after establishing a Neurosurgical private practice (which was his primary career goal) when she was four years old. She told her dying maternal grandmother in 1981 that she wanted to be a nurse. Her oldest sister died of metastatic breast cancer in 2013. She lived with catherine months before her death, made the decision that she wanted to transition to Hospice, and died less than 24 hours later. 

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Catherine will provide support and education to help the family with the loved ones transition. She will honor their path without judgment.