Family caregiver vs direct care worker

The differences between family caregivers and direct care workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a family caregiver has an average salary of $32,827, which is higher than the $29,343 average annual salary of a direct care worker.

The top three skills for a family caregiver include meal preparation, companionship and in-home care. The most important skills for a direct care worker are direct care, patients, and CPR.

Family caregiver vs direct care worker overview

	Family Caregiver	Direct Care Worker
Yearly salary	$32,827	$29,343
Hourly rate	$15.78	$14.11
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	126,188	140,788
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	High School Diploma, 32%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a family caregiver do?

Family caregivers mainly provide care to families operating as health care system extensions. The caregivers perform complicated therapeutic and medical tasks and ensure recipients' compliance with their therapeutic regimens. They serve as home-based coordinators of care and personal care recipient advocates. It is their job to assess the needs of the families. They also prepare a care plan, help with housekeeping, provide companionship, monitor medications, and prepare meals.

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.

Family caregiver vs direct care worker salary

Family caregivers and direct care workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Family Caregiver	Direct Care Worker
Average salary	$32,827	$29,343
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $46,000	Between $23,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	-	Portland, ME
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Arizona Training & Evaluation Center
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between family caregiver and direct care worker education

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

	Family Caregiver	Direct Care Worker
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	High School Diploma, 32%
Most common major	Business	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Family caregiver vs direct care worker demographics

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

	Family Caregiver	Direct Care Worker
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 29.3% Female, 70.7%	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 8.6% White, 56.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	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 family caregiver and direct care worker duties and responsibilities

Family caregiver example responsibilities.

Manage all household duties, meals, laundry, groceries, appointments, etc.
Be up to date on CPR, first aid and classes.
Preform a great knowledge of CPR experience.
Assist with ADL's, socialization, and developmental progression.
Give daily injections of insulin and attempt to prevent complications of diabetes.
Instructed/Advise individuals on issues such as household cleanliness, hygiene, nutrition, and infant care.

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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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Family caregiver vs direct care worker skills

Common family caregiver skills

Meal Preparation, 18%
Companionship, 11%
In-Home Care, 10%
Medical Assistance, 9%
Doctor Appointments, 6%
Medication Administration, 4%

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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Updated January 8, 2025

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