Direct support professional vs direct care worker

The differences between direct support professionals and direct care workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct support professional has an average salary of $32,077, which is higher than the $29,343 average annual salary of a direct care worker.

The top three skills for a direct support professional include direct support, developmental disabilities and autism. The most important skills for a direct care worker are direct care, patients, and CPR.

Direct support professional vs direct care worker overview

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Worker
Yearly salary	$32,077	$29,343
Hourly rate	$15.42	$14.11
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	142,034	140,788
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	High School Diploma, 32%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a direct support professional do?

Direct support professionals are responsible for taking care of patients with physical or mental limitations. They do a variety of tasks for their patients, such as doing household chores, running errands for them, cooking for them, feeding them, bathing and dressing them, and helping them with their medication, among others. They also provide their patients with companionship, accompanying their patients to appointments, providing emotional support, and being with their patients for the most part of the day. They should be familiar with their patients' prescribed medicines, meal plans, therapy schedules, and other items related to the betterment of the patients' condition. Direct support professionals help the patients overcome their challenges and assist them in acclimating themselves with their current environment.

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.

Direct support professional vs direct care worker salary

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

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Worker
Average salary	$32,077	$29,343
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $54,000	Between $23,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	Santa Clara, CA	Portland, ME
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	Meta	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center
Best paying industry	Government	Professional

Differences between direct support professional and direct care worker education

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

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Worker
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	High School Diploma, 32%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Direct support professional vs direct care worker demographics

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

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Worker
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	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%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between direct support professional and direct care worker duties and responsibilities

Direct support professional example responsibilities.

Work with adults who have disabilities to help manage everyday tasks such as laundry, cooking, preparing groceries, etc.
Provide care to adults with intellectual & developmental disabilities while administering their medication via AMAP certification
Support the development of individuals with autism by promoting community involvement and performing exercises to strengthen their cognitive and social skills.
Assist with toileting, including urinals.
Maintain medical records according to all HIPPA guidelines.
Assist coordinator to train new DCW on assign shift.

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 support professional vs direct care worker skills

Common direct support professional skills

Direct Support, 19%
Developmental Disabilities, 12%
Autism, 9%
Direct Care, 7%
DSP, 7%
Mental Health, 6%

Common direct care worker skills

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

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Zippia Careers
Personal Care and Attendants Industry
Direct Support Professional
Direct Support Professional vs Direct Care Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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