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When you think about health care, you probably picture doctors, nurses or hospitals. But there’s a whole team of people working behind the scenes to help patients, and one of them is Noah Yisrael.

Noah is a lab courier at Salem Health. His job is to pick up lab specimens — like blood or urine samples — from clinics and deliver them to Salem Health Laboratory – State Street. These samples help doctors figure out what’s going on with a patient’s health.

He started in 2017 and works full-time. Noah says he loves what he does.

“I love most that you have no one over your shoulder, you get to be in your car, you can think more,” said Noah. “I take my job seriously, but I know how to have fun at the same time.”

Why lab couriers matter

Noah is one of Salem Health’s 15 lab couriers. They pick up around 7,500 specimen bags every year. That’s a lot of important deliveries!

“It’s great being out on the road helping people, picking up the specimens and bringing them back so they get the results for their health,” said Noah.

Together, the team drives over 19,000 miles a year, making about 15,000 stops in cities throughout the mid-Willamette Valley like Salem, Keizer, Stayton, Independence, Monmouth, Dallas, Woodburn and Sublimity.

Teamwork in tough weather

Even when the weather gets bad, the courier team shows up, working together to make sure samples get where they need to go — no matter what.

“The most challenging part is when we have a real bad snowstorm, us couriers, some of us can’t make it in because it’s hard to drive in those conditions. So, most of us will team up and help each other on our routes,” Noah said.

Music, community and connection

Noah clearly remembers the first moment he saw a lab courier in action. He was enamored.

“I was going to urgent care to get blood drawn and I saw a courier come through and I said, ‘Wow, that’s a cool job right there.’”

For Noah, the job is more than just driving and listening to music. It’s about connecting with people.

“It’s just giving back to the community. I love it,” he said. “Just enjoying the good weather and the people that I drive by, because there are some people that I see normally on my drive, and I wave and beep and say, ‘Hey!’”

Growing through the work

Noah says being a lab courier has helped him grow as a person.

“It’s been helping with my communication skills,” he said. “Because I normally used to be shy to talk to people. And now I’m just, ‘Hey, hi, how are you doing?’”

He’s proud to represent Salem Health wherever he goes.

“I’m driving for Salem Health, and I got their vehicle, I feel like I’m a king or something,  to be honest with you,” he said chuckling. “I work for a great company — I work for Salem Health. I like to boast and brag, whatever. I embrace it. I love it.”

And sometimes, the smallest moments mean the most.

“An older couple a couple days ago on the elevator said, ‘Thank you, we’re glad you do what you do.’ And I said, ‘Thank you very much.’ I was appreciative of that. That made me feel good.”

Lab couriers like Noah are a vital part of health care. They make sure patients get their test results quickly and safely, and they do it with heart, dedication and a smile.

Want to learn more about careers at Salem Health? Visit careers.salemhealth.org to explore opportunities and serve alongside amazing team members like Noah.