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The differences between patient care assistants and caregivers assistant can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a patient care assistant has an average salary of $32,799, which is higher than the $30,471 average annual salary of a caregiver assistant.
The top three skills for a patient care assistant include patients, vital signs and PCA. The most important skills for a caregiver assistant are compassion, customer service, and senior care.
| Patient Care Assistant | Caregiver Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $32,799 | $30,471 |
| Hourly rate | $15.77 | $14.65 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 36% |
| Number of jobs | 261,345 | 177,566 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 26% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Average age | 42 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 3 | - |
A patient care assistant is responsible for attending patients' needs with the supervision of a health care professional. Duties of a patient care assistant also include performing basic medical tasks such as taking patients' temperature, monitoring food intake, preparing medicines, recording health conditions, assisting on lab tests and other medical procedures, and providing information and important updates to the patient's family. A patient care assistant must have excellent time-management and multi-tasking skills to perform duties efficiently and accurately.
A caregiver assistant provides care and assistance to elderly patients or those with mobility issues. They usually work at assisted living facilities where they are in charge of helping patients eat, bathe and dress, go to the toilet, take walks in the garden, and drink medicine. They also perform chores such as preparing meals according to nutrition plans, doing the laundry, arranging beds, and maintaining the cleanliness of different areas. Moreover, a caregiver assistant also builds positive relationships with patients to give them emotional support and help them feel comfortable.
Patient care assistants and caregivers assistant have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Patient Care Assistant | Caregiver Assistant | |
| Average salary | $32,799 | $30,471 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $45,000 | Between $23,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Diego, CA | Spokane, WA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | The Center for Enriched Living |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a patient care assistant and a caregiver assistant in terms of educational background:
| Patient Care Assistant | Caregiver Assistant | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 26% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between patient care assistants' and caregivers assistant' demographics:
| Patient Care Assistant | Caregiver Assistant | |
| Average age | 42 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 14.4% Female, 85.6% | Male, 17.6% Female, 82.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 7.3% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.0% Asian, 8.4% White, 54.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |