Geriatric aide vs direct care aide

The differences between geriatric aides 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 $29,936 average annual salary of a geriatric aide.

The top three skills for a geriatric aide include ADL, patient care and vital signs. The most important skills for a direct care aide are home health, foster care, and CPR.

Geriatric aide vs direct care aide overview

	Geriatric Aide	Direct Care Aide
Yearly salary	$29,936	$30,429
Hourly rate	$14.39	$14.63
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	44,150	178,038
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	High School Diploma, 35%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

Geriatric aide vs direct care aide salary

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

	Geriatric Aide	Direct Care Aide
Average salary	$29,936	$30,429
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $39,000	Between $22,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	-	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	-	Vermont
Best paying company	-	Univ Of Colorado-Colorado Spgs
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between geriatric aide and direct care aide education

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

	Geriatric Aide	Direct Care Aide
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	High School Diploma, 35%
Most common major	Psychology	Nursing
Most common college	-	-

Geriatric aide vs direct care aide demographics

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

	Geriatric Aide	Direct Care Aide
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 8.8% Female, 91.3%	Male, 20.8% Female, 79.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 22.8% Asian, 13.6% White, 47.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	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 geriatric aide and direct care aide duties and responsibilities

Geriatric aide example responsibilities.

Sit with residents and assist with food trays.
Provide companionship on a daily basis by lending an ear or a shoulder to lean on.
Conduct individual exercise instruction as prescribed by supervising therapist, significantly resulting in improving the overall well being of many patients.
Conduct qualifying assessments for prospective GED exam candidates.

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.

Geriatric aide vs direct care aide skills

Common geriatric aide skills

ADL, 86%
Patient Care, 8%
Vital Signs, 4%
Body Mechanics, 1%
Individual Treatment Plan, 1%
Companionship, 0%

Common direct care aide skills

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