Direct care worker vs certified medical technician

The differences between direct care workers and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $29,343 average annual salary of a direct care worker.

The top three skills for a direct care worker include direct care, patients and CPR. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Direct care worker vs certified medical technician overview

	Direct Care Worker	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$29,343	$38,859
Hourly rate	$14.11	$18.68
Growth rate	36%	5%
Number of jobs	140,788	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	48	44
Years of experience	-	12

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.

What does a certified medical technician do?

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.

Direct care worker vs certified medical technician salary

Direct care workers and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Direct Care Worker	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$29,343	$38,859
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $36,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Portland, ME	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	Washington	Alaska
Best paying company	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Professional	Health Care

Differences between direct care worker and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a direct care worker and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Direct Care Worker	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Psychology	Nursing
Most common college	-	University of Connecticut

Direct care worker vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between direct care workers' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Direct Care Worker	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	48	44
Gender ratio	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	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%	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	7%	8%

Differences between direct care worker and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

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.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Direct care worker vs certified medical technician skills

Common direct care worker skills

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

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Direct Care Worker vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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