Direct care worker vs direct care aide

The differences between direct care workers and direct care aides can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct care aide has an average salary of $30,429, 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 direct care aide are home health, foster care, and CPR.

Direct care worker vs direct care aide overview

	Direct Care Worker	Direct Care Aide
Yearly salary	$29,343	$30,429
Hourly rate	$14.11	$14.63
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	140,788	178,038
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 35%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

Direct care worker vs direct care aide salary

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

	Direct Care Worker	Direct Care Aide
Average salary	$29,343	$30,429
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $36,000	Between $22,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Portland, ME	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Vermont
Best paying company	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center	Univ Of Colorado-Colorado Spgs
Best paying industry	Professional	Energy

Differences between direct care worker and direct care aide education

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

	Direct Care Worker	Direct Care Aide
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 35%
Most common major	Psychology	Nursing
Most common college	-	-

Direct care worker vs direct care aide demographics

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

	Direct Care Worker	Direct Care Aide
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%	Male, 20.8% Female, 79.2%
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, 12.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 8.0% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between direct care worker and direct care aide 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.

Direct care aide example responsibilities.

Provide individuals appropriate assistance in completing ADL's, such as showering, toileting, transferring, dressing, and feeding.
Assist mentally disable adults with ADL's such as showering, grooming, oral care, eating, dressing and toileting.
Provide emotional and mental support to unstable patients and are experience in dealing with aggressive residents
Provide caring and companionship to elderly and developmentally disable consumers and provide primary resident care and assistance with daily living activities.
Advocate for disable children, help them thrive through completion of goals and one-on-one supervision SCIP, AMAP and CPR certify.
Dispense and administer medication to patients according to AMAP policies and procedures.

Direct care worker vs direct care aide skills

Common direct care worker skills

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

Common direct care aide skills

Home Health, 17%
Foster Care, 10%
CPR, 9%
Patients, 7%
Meal Prep, 7%
Rehabilitation, 6%