Group home worker vs direct care provider

The differences between group home workers and direct care providers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a group home worker has an average salary of $40,224, which is higher than the $29,470 average annual salary of a direct care provider.

The top three skills for a group home worker include social work, crisis intervention and data entry. The most important skills for a direct care provider are CPR, developmental disabilities, and mental health.

Group home worker vs direct care provider overview

	Group Home Worker	Direct Care Provider
Yearly salary	$40,224	$29,470
Hourly rate	$19.34	$14.17
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	88,906	117,168
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Average age	50	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a group home worker do?

A group home worker is an employee who assists with different types of patients staying in group homes to help them develop life skills until they are ready to live independently. Group home workers must assist different types of patients, such as adults diagnosed with mental illness, seniors with disabilities, or young residents who cannot live with their families due to behavioral issues. They must monitor the behavior of residents, especially those with a troubled past.

What does a direct care provider do?

A Direct Care Worker specializes in providing care and assistance to patients, typically to the elderly. Their responsibilities include preparing and feeding meals, administering medication and other treatments, and monitoring their conditions, updating the physician or the patients' families regularly. They must also assist patients in various hygienic tasks such as bathing, dressing, brushing teeth, or going to the toilet. There are instances when Direct Care Workers must perform various household tasks such as laundry, washing the dishes, shopping for groceries, and running errands as needed.

Group home worker vs direct care provider salary

Group home workers and direct care providers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Group Home Worker	Direct Care Provider
Average salary	$40,224	$29,470
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $54,000	Between $20,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	Fairbanks, AK	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Alaska
Best paying company	Texas	Washington State University
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Health Care

Differences between group home worker and direct care provider education

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

	Group Home Worker	Direct Care Provider
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Group home worker vs direct care provider demographics

Here are the differences between group home workers' and direct care providers' demographics:

	Group Home Worker	Direct Care Provider
Average age	50	48
Gender ratio	Male, 26.8% Female, 73.2%	Male, 23.6% Female, 76.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 24.0% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 23.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 35.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	7%

Differences between group home worker and direct care provider duties and responsibilities

Group home worker example responsibilities.

Provide companionship, socialization and emotional support.
Provide transportation to medical appointments and transfer patients in and out of wheelchairs
Experience working with the elderly, Alzheimer's or dementia patients.
Maintain the living areas by cleaning, doing laundry, and shopping for groceries.
Plan meals, shopping for groceries, preparing and serving food/meals, feeding, and clean-up.
Assist and redirect clients with ADL skills, transport clients to daily activities, and focuse on documentation.

Direct care provider example responsibilities.

Require certification in MANDT and CPR.
Coach and train clients to improve their daily living (ADL), social interaction and job skills.
Provide instruction and assist the consumers with active daily living (ADL) skills such as cooking, bathing, dressing.
Provide caring and companionship to elderly and developmentally disable consumers and provide primary resident care and assistance with daily living activities.
Facilitate exercise, vocational, arts-n-crafts, and daily living skills groups for consumers with DD.

Group home worker vs direct care provider skills

Common group home worker skills

Social Work, 31%
Crisis Intervention, 20%
Data Entry, 12%
Meal Prep, 7%
CPR, 5%
Independent Living, 5%

Common direct care provider skills

CPR, 24%
Developmental Disabilities, 23%
Mental Health, 5%
Direct Care, 4%
Intellectual Disabilities, 4%
Home Health, 4%

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Healthcare Support Industry
Group Home Worker
Group Home Worker vs Direct Care Provider

Updated January 8, 2025

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