In small-town Mississippi, where poverty is endemic, transportation is limited and a trip to the emergency room can lead to financial ruin, an alternative exists for those in the know.

His name is Dr. Landrum — Carrol Frazier Landrum — and, even if your pockets are empty, the 88-year-old physician from Edwards, Miss., will schedule you for an appointment.

For the last two years, Landrum has been working without an office, but he's happy to meet his patients wherever they are. Sometimes, the meetings occur in a home; sometimes they take place in a parking lot. Other patients meet the doctor on the side of a quiet country road — or inside his 2007 Toyota Camry.

The location doesn't matter because Landrum, a World War II veteran who has been in private practice for more than 55 years, believes it's his duty to help anyone who calls on him.

"I've always had a heart for the poor," Landrum told The Washington Post this week, struggling to hold back tears. "I grew up poor, and when the doctor would come to us, and he was happy to see us, I pictured myself doing that some day. I try not to ever turn people away — money or no money – because that's where the need is."