`` Direct Support Professional '' is one of the terms used to refer to a paid worker or caregiver .
A paid worker may be referred to as a `` care worker '' , `` professional caregiver '' , `` personal assistant '' , `` healthcare assistant ( HCA ) '' or `` care assistant '' , but there is a considerable degree of variation and overlap in everyday and professional usage and `` carer '' is sometimes used informally as a synonym .
Caregiver