Direct care worker vs child care worker

The differences between direct care workers and child care workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a child care worker has an average salary of $31,284, 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 child care worker are child care, crisis intervention, and behavioral issues.

Direct care worker vs child care worker overview

	Direct Care Worker	Child Care Worker
Yearly salary	$29,343	$31,284
Hourly rate	$14.11	$15.04
Growth rate	36%	6%
Number of jobs	140,788	136,963
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age	48	37
Years of experience	-	2

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 child care worker do?

A child care worker is responsible for providing care and supervision to children while the parents or guardians are away. A child care worker's duty may involve changing diapers and preparing milk for infants and toddlers, devise strategies or fun activities where children can learn, arrange schedules to fit their needs such as nap times, and prepare healthy meals and snacks. Aside from ensuring children's safety, a child care worker must also monitor any sign of emotional or developmental issues so it can be brought to the parents' attention as soon as possible.

Direct care worker vs child care worker salary

Direct care workers and child care workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Direct Care Worker	Child Care Worker
Average salary	$29,343	$31,284
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $36,000	Between $19,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City	Portland, ME	Worcester, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	Professional	Finance

Differences between direct care worker and child care worker education

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

	Direct Care Worker	Child Care Worker
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	-	California State University - Long Beach

Direct care worker vs child care worker demographics

Here are the differences between direct care workers' and child care workers' demographics:

	Direct Care Worker	Child Care Worker
Average age	48	37
Gender ratio	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%	Male, 21.1% Female, 78.9%
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, 8.8% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 6.8% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	7%	4%

Differences between direct care worker and child care worker 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.

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Child care worker example responsibilities.

Obtain certification in CPR to ensure minors would be properly resuscitate in an emergency.
Require to maintain continuing education in courses including passive restraint, standard first aid and CPR.
Complete accurate and timely documentation on kids' behavior as outlined by policy.
Create math, reading, bible, and art lessons.

Direct care worker vs child care worker skills

Common direct care worker skills

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

Common child care worker skills

Child Care, 39%
Crisis Intervention, 9%
Behavioral Issues, 8%
CPR, 5%
Direct Supervision, 5%
TCI, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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