Assisted living administrator vs direct care worker

The differences between assisted living administrators and direct care workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct care worker has an average salary of $29,343, which is higher than the $28,196 average annual salary of an assisted living administrator.

The top three skills for an assisted living administrator include resident care, patients and senior care. The most important skills for a direct care worker are direct care, patients, and CPR.

Assisted living administrator vs direct care worker overview

	Assisted Living Administrator	Direct Care Worker
Yearly salary	$28,196	$29,343
Hourly rate	$13.56	$14.11
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	99,059	140,788
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	High School Diploma, 32%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does an assisted living administrator do?

An Assisted Living Administrator oversees an assisted living facility's daily operations that accommodate elderly residents, ensuring that they get optimal care and service. They are responsible for performing managerial tasks such as setting objectives and schedules, managing budgets, liaising with suppliers and other partners, gathering and analyzing data to identify the residents' needs, and monitoring the operations, resolving issues should any arise. They coordinate and delegate responsibilities among staff, regularly reviewing their performances while implementing the facility's policies and regulations.

What does a direct care worker do?

A Direct Care Worker's responsibility revolves around overseeing clients' welfare and health care from different ages and conditions. Most of the duties will involve assistance in basic hygienic tasks such as bathing or going to the toilet, performing light chores such as preparing healthy meals and cleaning a bedroom, and ensuring the patient's medication intake aligns with the schedule. Furthermore, it is also the duty of a Direct Care Worker to empathize and build rapport with clients to make them feel more at ease.

Assisted living administrator vs direct care worker salary

Assisted living administrators and direct care workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Assisted Living Administrator	Direct Care Worker
Average salary	$28,196	$29,343
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $36,000	Between $23,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	Auburn, WA	Portland, ME
Highest paying state	Oregon	Washington
Best paying company	ZeniMax Media	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center
Best paying industry	Media	Professional

Differences between assisted living administrator and direct care worker education

There are a few differences between an assisted living administrator and a direct care worker in terms of educational background:

	Assisted Living Administrator	Direct Care Worker
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	High School Diploma, 32%
Most common major	Nursing	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Assisted living administrator vs direct care worker demographics

Here are the differences between assisted living administrators' and direct care workers' demographics:

	Assisted Living Administrator	Direct Care Worker
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 22.8% Female, 77.2%	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.7% Asian, 7.6% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between assisted living administrator and direct care worker duties and responsibilities

Assisted living administrator example responsibilities.

pass attain as well as CPR training.
Remain up to date with CPR, first aid, and van driver training.
Stimulate resident's mental development and memory with daily historical novels to reduce memory loss due to Alzheimer's disease
Transport individuals to and from work and school, assist individuals with their ADL s and assist with preparing meals.
Provide assistants with therapy exercises and encourage patients to activities provide in facility.
Encourage independence with all ADL's, activity participation and monitoring behavioral changes.

Direct care worker example responsibilities.

Provide caring companionship to elderly and developmentally disable patients with or without chronic health diagnosis.
Assist individuals with developmental/intellectual disabilities with ADL's.
Conduct socialization groups to aid individuals in development of ADL and socialization skills.
Prepare daily documents administer medications handle patients hygiene house cleaning and provide transportation to and from appointment
Provide caring and companionship to elderly and developmentally disable consumers and provide primary resident care and assistance with daily living activities.
Provide day to day services that include transport, nutrition, hygiene, housekeeping and activities to MRDD clients.

Assisted living administrator vs direct care worker skills

Common assisted living administrator skills

Resident Care, 12%
Patients, 11%
Senior Care, 7%
Quality Care, 7%
Infection Control, 7%
Home Health, 6%

Common direct care worker skills

Direct Care, 22%
Patients, 11%
CPR, 7%
Developmental Disabilities, 4%
Crisis Intervention, 4%
Vital Signs, 4%

Assisted Living Administrator vs. similar jobs

Assisted Living Administrator related careers

Assisted Living Administrator related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Personal Care and Attendants Industry
Assisted Living Administrator
Assisted Living Administrator vs Direct Care Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse personal care and attendants jobs