Post job

Resident care assistant vs health care assistant

The differences between resident care assistants and health care assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a health care assistant has an average salary of $34,892, which is higher than the $30,930 average annual salary of a resident care assistant.

The top three skills for a resident care assistant include resident care, customer service and patients. The most important skills for a health care assistant are patients, customer service, and healthcare.

Resident care assistant vs health care assistant overview

Resident Care AssistantHealth Care Assistant
Yearly salary$30,930$34,892
Hourly rate$14.87$16.77
Growth rate9%36%
Number of jobs199,892242,669
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 28%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age4250
Years of experience3-

What does a resident care assistant do?

Resident care assistants work with a group to care for residents with Alzheimer's disease, administer treatments, and chart their conditions. They manage intermediate care patients with EKG monitoring and epidural infusions. They assist residents with various forms of dementia to live while providing for their well-being. The assistants may also facilitate activities and games to engage residents with dementia. They assist residents in the dementia care unit with including dressing, showers, and bed baths. This position may require traits like integrity, compassion, and physical stamina.

What does a health care assistant do?

A health care assistant primarily performs support tasks to help nurses in providing care and assistance to patients. Their duties usually include assisting patients with their daily hygienic tasks such as bathing, going to the toilet, dressing, and brushing their teeth. They may also prepare meals according to protocols and guidelines, feed patients, assist them when walking, and run other errands as necessary. Most importantly, a health care assistant monitors the patients' condition and their treatment progress, coordinating with the nurses and physicians regularly.

Resident care assistant vs health care assistant salary

Resident care assistants and health care assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Resident Care AssistantHealth Care Assistant
Average salary$30,930$34,892
Salary rangeBetween $24,000 And $39,000Between $25,000 And $47,000
Highest paying CityChelsea, MAAntioch, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonAlaska
Best paying companyBrigham and Women's HospitalMedical University of South Carolina
Best paying industryGovernmentEducation

Differences between resident care assistant and health care assistant education

There are a few differences between a resident care assistant and a health care assistant in terms of educational background:

Resident Care AssistantHealth Care Assistant
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 28%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common college--

Resident care assistant vs health care assistant demographics

Here are the differences between resident care assistants' and health care assistants' demographics:

Resident Care AssistantHealth Care Assistant
Average age4250
Gender ratioMale, 12.4% Female, 87.6%Male, 18.8% Female, 81.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 6.6% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%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%
LGBT Percentage7%5%

Differences between resident care assistant and health care assistant duties and responsibilities

Resident care assistant example responsibilities.

  • Conduct and facilitate PCA lead group activities as scheduled
  • Perform patient care, to include ADL's and assistance with ambulation and activities in an Alzheimer's unit.
  • Provide care and assistance with ADL's to the residents of the memory care and rehab units.
  • Work with a team to care for 48 residents with Alzheimer's disease, chart conditions, administer treatments
  • Assist client with: elastic support hose, condom catheter, indwelling catheter, emptying collection bag, hygiene.
  • Maintain distribution and tracking of telemetry packs for entire hospital.
  • Show more

Health care assistant example responsibilities.

  • Monitor / enforce OSHA standards and coordinate / lead daily, weekly, and monthly safety meetings to educate staff.
  • Manage ventilator settings, suction tracheostomy, tube-feeding assistance.
  • Facilitate physical therapy exercises, positional rotation, monitor medication compliance and effects, provide companionship, carry out ADL's.
  • care professional, extremely competent, providing guidance and counseling for rehabilitation of mentally disturb patients.
  • Process consults requests for electrophysiology, EKG and other services.
  • Assist train staff in the event of cardiac arrest and actively participate in CPR.
  • Show more

Resident care assistant vs health care assistant skills

Common resident care assistant skills
  • Resident Care, 18%
  • Customer Service, 8%
  • Patients, 8%
  • Home Health, 8%
  • Compassion, 6%
  • Assist Residents, 5%
Common health care assistant skills
  • Patients, 20%
  • Customer Service, 11%
  • Healthcare, 10%
  • Patient Appointments, 8%
  • Direct Patient Care, 8%
  • Medical Equipment, 7%

Browse healthcare support jobs