Resident care associate vs care provider

The differences between resident care associates and care providers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a resident care associate has an average salary of $30,497, which is higher than the $29,652 average annual salary of a care provider.

The top three skills for a resident care associate include resident care, administer medications and RCA. The most important skills for a care provider are senior care, patients, and administer medications.

Resident care associate vs care provider overview

	Resident Care Associate	Care Provider
Yearly salary	$30,497	$29,652
Hourly rate	$14.66	$14.26
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	130,625	169,562
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 26%	High School Diploma, 30%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a resident care associate do?

Resident Care Associates are responsible for providing support and care to individuals living in nursing homes or assisted living facilities. Their duties include assisting residents with daily tasks such as eating, bathing, and dressing, audit care records, as well as making sure patients take their prescribed medications. They implement daily group activities, attend to medical or safety issues, and communicates any concerns to a resident's family members as required.

What does a care provider do?

A care provider is responsible for assisting patients with their healthcare needs at the highest quality service. Care providers work in various medical organizations or are privately employed by a household. They perform medical procedures such as taking the patient's temperature and vital signs, monitoring their food intake, administering medications, collecting specimens for laboratory tests, and reporting the patient's condition to the attending physician or other health care professionals. A care provider must have excellent communication and organization skills, especially when consulting with patients for their needs and developing healthcare plans.

Resident care associate vs care provider salary

Resident care associates and care providers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Resident Care Associate	Care Provider
Average salary	$30,497	$29,652
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $38,000	Between $17,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City	Salem, OR	Attleboro, MA
Highest paying state	Oregon	Massachusetts
Best paying company	The Philadelphia Coalition	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Best paying industry	Media	Government

Differences between resident care associate and care provider education

There are a few differences between a resident care associate and a care provider in terms of educational background:

	Resident Care Associate	Care Provider
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 26%	High School Diploma, 30%
Most common major	Nursing	Business
Most common college	-	-

Resident care associate vs care provider demographics

Here are the differences between resident care associates' and care providers' demographics:

	Resident Care Associate	Care Provider
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 14.6% Female, 85.4%	Male, 22.1% Female, 77.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 8.7% White, 58.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 22.3% Asian, 8.3% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between resident care associate and care provider duties and responsibilities

Resident care associate example responsibilities.

Assist Alzheimer patients with daily activities including personal care, administering medications and communicating with their families.
Assist in rehabilitation to transfer home.
Have been train to administer medication, CPR train, and mechanical lift train.
Maintain cleanliness throughout med pass, and practice aseptic technique when pouring and assisting with medication.
Assist with ADL's, medication assistance, dinning room service, answering the telephones and front desk monitoring.
Care for residents with diagnosis such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and arthritis.

Care provider example responsibilities.

Manage provider network to include verifying claims and benefits for healthcare providers/members and insurance companies.
Aid and facilitate higher functioning patients reach their fullest potential while managing behavioral episodes as needed.
Accompany to medical appointments, administer medications, assist with ADL's, community integration, personal care, and therapeutic activities
Review appeals for Medicare non-participating providers following CMS specific guidelines for these providers.
Provide direct patient care to critical and non-critical emergency department patients as an experience EMT-Paramedic.
Change tracheal tube and catheter.

Resident care associate vs care provider skills

Common resident care associate skills

Resident Care, 24%
Administer Medications, 13%
RCA, 12%
Assist Residents, 7%
Emergency Situations, 6%
Pathogens, 5%

Common care provider skills

Senior Care, 23%
Patients, 13%
Administer Medications, 6%
Direct Care, 6%
Meal Prep, 6%
Patient Care, 6%

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Personal Care and Attendants Industry
Resident Care Associate
Resident Care Associate vs Care Provider

Updated January 8, 2025

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