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The differences between dietary aides and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a dietary aide, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $28,005 average annual salary of a dietary aide.
The top three skills for a dietary aide include patients, meal trays and food service. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Dietary Aide | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $28,005 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $13.46 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 44,494 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | 3 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 41 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
A dietary aide is responsible for assisting food preparations and ensuring that the meals adhere to an individual's specific diet plans. Dietary aides must strictly follow sanitation standards and hygiene procedures to guarantee the safety and quality of the service. They also help in facilitating kitchen maintenance, keeping every area clean and organized. Dietary aides must also have comprehensive knowledge of nutritional guidelines to provide information and share suggestions as necessary to improve the service and preparations.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Dietary aides and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Dietary Aide | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $28,005 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $35,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Vancouver, WA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Lifespan | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a dietary aide and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Dietary Aide | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Business | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between dietary aides' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Dietary Aide | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 41 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 14.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 5.8% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |