Patient care technician vs care associate

The differences between patient care technicians and care associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a patient care technician has an average salary of $32,806, which is higher than the $32,558 average annual salary of a care associate.

The top three skills for a patient care technician include patients, vital signs and phlebotomy. The most important skills for a care associate are patients, vital signs, and PCA.

Patient care technician vs care associate overview

	Patient Care Technician	Care Associate
Yearly salary	$32,806	$32,558
Hourly rate	$15.77	$15.65
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	167,520	192,391
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 27%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	34	42
Years of experience	-	3

What does a patient care technician do?

Patient care technicians are medical workers who work in clinics, hospitals, or other medical facilities under the supervision of doctors or other health professionals. They provide assistance to health professionals and patients. They help patients with mobility concerns get into hospital beds, bathrooms, wheelchairs, and more. They also help patients with their physical therapy sessions and other physical needs. They handle patient concerns and communicate these to attending physicians. They may be assigned to administer basic medical procedures such as checking vital signs and collecting samples from patients, among others.

What does a care associate do?

Patient care associates typically work at different healthcare settings where their primary job is to provide basic patient needs and comfort. They are also responsible for several patient care tasks, including bathing patients, changing the pillows and bedsheets of patients, and serving patients' meals. They should comply with safety protocols when performing these tasks. Some of them can give patients medication depending on the level of their training. To become a patient care specialist, one should possess several skills, such as good communication.

Patient care technician vs care associate salary

Patient care technicians and care associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Care Technician	Care Associate
Average salary	$32,806	$32,558
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $43,000	Between $21,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Rochester, NH	Hollister, CA
Highest paying state	Vermont	Hawaii
Best paying company	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center	Analysis Group
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between patient care technician and care associate education

There are a few differences between a patient care technician and a care associate in terms of educational background:

	Patient Care Technician	Care Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 27%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	Emory University	-

Patient care technician vs care associate demographics

Here are the differences between patient care technicians' and care associates' demographics:

	Patient Care Technician	Care Associate
Average age	34	42
Gender ratio	Male, 19.0% Female, 81.0%	Male, 22.3% Female, 77.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 14.3% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 6.4% White, 51.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 7.8% White, 62.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	15%	7%

Differences between patient care technician and care associate duties and responsibilities

Patient care technician example responsibilities.

Manage care and prepare medical records, transcription and supply orders.
Manage daily care of high acuity patients with neurological trauma/disorders and post-surgery.
Qualify to perform patient care responsibilities on catheter patients.
Transport patients using wheelchairs and stretchers and assist patients to ambulate safely.
Assist with transferring patients in and out of wheelchairs, recliners, and stretchers.
Apply protective restraints safely and appropriately, assist in the admission, discharge and transfer of patients as needed.

Care associate example responsibilities.

Manage ventilator settings, suction tracheostomy, tube-feeding assistance.
Provide direct care to patients in intensive care unit with empathy, compassion and enthusiasm.
Utilize strong interpersonal skills to educate patients on procedures, rehabilitation and contraception methods.
Care for patients requiring telemetry monitoring and work collaboratively with telemetry technician/nurses to detect and report abnormalities to physicians.
Coordinate with clinicians to meet the specific needs of patients and perform clinical care in an ICU.
Assign to new ER and ICU departments by leadership to maintain quality of patient care and increase patient satisfaction.

Patient care technician vs care associate skills

Common patient care technician skills

Patients, 24%
Vital Signs, 9%
Phlebotomy, 7%
CPR, 6%
Direct Patient Care, 5%
Customer Service, 5%

Common care associate skills

Patients, 24%
Vital Signs, 11%
PCA, 7%
Phlebotomy, 7%
CPR, 7%
Customer Service, 5%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Patient Care Technician
Patient Care Technician vs Care Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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