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Direct care aide skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical direct care aide skills. We ranked the top skills for direct care aides based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 16.8% of direct care aide resumes contained home health as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a direct care aide needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 direct care aide skills for your resume and career

1. Home Health

Here's how direct care aides use home health:

Experienced working in a long-term care facility, in home health care and in a group home
Provided home health care for mentally and physically challenged individuals.

2. Foster Care

Here's how direct care aides use foster care:

Provided comprehensive daily living assistance to an elderly woman in her home until she moved into an Adult Foster Care home.
Performed general house responsibilities for a 12 - member adult foster care residence.

3. CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is a medical procedure that involves chest compression to help a patient breathe. This artificial ventilation helps in keeping the brain function in place and regulates blood throughout the body. CPR is a lifesaving procedure that is used in emergencies.

Here's how direct care aides use cpr:

Participate in certification for: SCIP, AMAP, First Aid, and CPR.
Level 1 Med Aide, First Aid and CPR Assisted with the direct care of developmentally disabled individuals.

4. Patients

Here's how direct care aides use patients:

Provided assistance with daily living and social activities with psychiatric patients - Maintained and updated patients records
Provided emotional and mental support to unstable patients and are experienced in dealing with aggressive residents

5. Meal Prep

Meal prepping refers to the practice of preparing healthy meals long before the timing of its consumption. This practice is widely popular among working individuals who have very little free time on their hands. Prepping for future meals has some great health benefits apart from saving one's time as it enforces the idea of healthy eating and discourages the temptation of fast foods and takeouts.

Here's how direct care aides use meal prep:

Supervised and assisted needed residents during meal preparation, housekeeping responsibilities, personal hygiene, grooming and other activities as needed.
Administered medications, meal preparation, housekeeping, and transportation to appointments as necessary.

6. Rehabilitation

Here's how direct care aides use rehabilitation:

Administered medication to clients attending the Adult Day Rehabilitation Center, and at trained residential facilities.
Assisted clients who were diagnosed with cerebral palsy with daily living activities at rehabilitation facility.

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7. Vital Signs

Vital signs are a set of values indicating different body systems' performance. They are measurements of the body's most basic functions. The four major vital signs used in medicine to assess a patient are body temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure.

Here's how direct care aides use vital signs:

Check vital signs daily and administer medication accordingly.
Perform health care-related tasks, such as monitoring vital signs and medication, under the direction of physiotherapists.

8. Developmental Disabilities

Here's how direct care aides use developmental disabilities:

Assisted six Individuals with developmental disabilities to achieve their activities of daily living to their highest ability.
Offered recreation activities on an individualized basis to adults with developmental disabilities and related conditions.

9. Autism

Here's how direct care aides use autism:

Provided supervision and counseling to youth with autism, mental retardation, and other developmental disorders in a residential setting.
Seed to Supper Program Co-facilitated a group of adolescents with autism

10. Medical Appointments

A medical appointment is a scheduled / specific day and time for a person to be examined or treated by a physician, nurse, or other licensed healthcare professional. The aim of the medical appointment is for the physician to be able to identify health problems or illnesses at an early stage.

Here's how direct care aides use medical appointments:

Assisted with monitoring medical needs, including scheduling and transporting to medical appointments, filling prescriptions and self-administration of medications.
Participated in overall operation of the residence including driving, accompanying residents to medical appointments and recreation activities.

11. Direct Patient Care

Here's how direct care aides use direct patient care:

Provided direct patient care to individuals with disabilities and special needs
Provide direct patient care to developmentally delayed adults.

12. Community Outings

Here's how direct care aides use community outings:

Participated in the planning and execution of community outings.
Promote community inclusion by accompanying consumers on community outings.

13. Mental Illness

Here's how direct care aides use mental illness:

Worked with adults with severe and persistent mental illness who were approved for Mental Health Skill-Building Services through Medicaid.
Assisted individuals with developmental delays, behavioral disabilities, and mental illness in an assisted community living arrangement.

14. Quality Care

Here's how direct care aides use quality care:

Monitor policy and procedures, Provide quality care and customer service to residents.
Facilitate activities, Provide quality care and customer service to residents.

15. ADL

ADL is a clinical shorthand for "activities of daily living." It includes tasks such as feeding, dressing, bathing, and caring for one's self and personal hygiene.

Here's how direct care aides use adl:

Provided individuals appropriate assistance in completing ADL's, such as showering, toileting, transferring, dressing, and feeding.
Assist mentally disabled adults with ADL's such as showering, grooming, oral care, eating, dressing and toileting.

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List of direct care aide skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a direct care aide resume and required skills for a direct care aide to have include:

Home Health
Foster Care
CPR
Patients
Meal Prep
Rehabilitation
Vital Signs
Developmental Disabilities
Autism
Medical Appointments
Direct Patient Care
Community Outings
Mental Illness
Quality Care
ADL
HIPAA

Administer Medications
Client Care
Traction
Service Plan
Blood Pressure
Doctor Appointments
Oral Hygiene
Physical Disabilities
Bed Linens
Intellectual Disabilities
Emotional Support
Independent Living
Food Preparation
Alzheimer
Oral Medications
Motor Vehicle

Mrdd
Mental Disabilities
Social Interaction
Nutritious Meals
ISP
Medication Reminders
Bedpans
Dementia Care
Household Chores
Home Management
Groceries
Infant Care
Healthy Environment
Cooking Meals

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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