Psychiatric aide vs medication aide

The differences between psychiatric aides and medication aides can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a medication aide has an average salary of $40,799, which is higher than the $32,724 average annual salary of a psychiatric aide.

The top three skills for a psychiatric aide include patients, vital signs and social work. The most important skills for a medication aide are compassion, resident care, and state regulations.

Psychiatric aide vs medication aide overview

	Psychiatric Aide	Medication Aide
Yearly salary	$32,724	$40,799
Hourly rate	$15.73	$19.61
Growth rate	12%	9%
Number of jobs	50,234	275,582
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	High School Diploma, 23%
Average age	41	42
Years of experience	-	3

Psychiatric aide vs medication aide salary

Psychiatric aides and medication aides have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Psychiatric Aide	Medication Aide
Average salary	$32,724	$40,799
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $41,000	Between $33,000 And $50,000
Highest paying City	Vancouver, WA	Madison, WI
Highest paying state	Washington	Hawaii
Best paying company	Psychiatric Medical Care	Careerstaff Unlimited - A Genesis Healthcare Company
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Manufacturing

Differences between psychiatric aide and medication aide education

There are a few differences between a psychiatric aide and a medication aide in terms of educational background:

	Psychiatric Aide	Medication Aide
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	High School Diploma, 23%
Most common major	Psychology	Nursing
Most common college	-	-

Psychiatric aide vs medication aide demographics

Here are the differences between psychiatric aides' and medication aides' demographics:

	Psychiatric Aide	Medication Aide
Average age	41	42
Gender ratio	Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4%	Male, 15.7% Female, 84.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 27.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 4.6% White, 48.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 6.5% White, 63.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	8%	7%

Differences between psychiatric aide and medication aide duties and responsibilities

Psychiatric aide example responsibilities.

Prioritize and utilize therapeutic communication and CPI skills to diffuse and manage difficult situations.
Assist patients in becoming accustom to hospital routines and encourage them to participate in social and recreational activities to promote rehabilitation.
Train in cpr but certificate has expire.
Assist residents with adl and social skills.
Discover client cut him down and administer CPR.
Communicate effectively to patient and uphold HIPPA laws and regulations.

Medication aide example responsibilities.

Manage memory unity within facility.
Provide care for patients in need of long term care and rehabilitation.
Administer medication according to state laws and guidelines as well as facility guidelines and assist residents with ADL's.
preserve patient's dignity while providing such duties as bedpan changes, bathing, diapering, emptying catheter and colostomy bags.
Assist with changing colostomy bags.
learned to be more efficient with time restraints!

Psychiatric aide vs medication aide skills

Common psychiatric aide skills

Patients, 34%
Vital Signs, 15%
Social Work, 9%
Crisis Intervention, 6%
Blood Pressure, 6%
Rehabilitation, 6%

Common medication aide skills

Compassion, 11%
Resident Care, 11%
State Regulations, 8%
Infection Control, 7%
Incident Reports, 5%
Vital Signs, 5%

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Healthcare Support Industry
Psychiatric Aide
Psychiatric Aide vs Medication Aide

Updated January 8, 2025

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