ELMIRA, NY (WENY) -- Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) at Elmira and Five Star Bank announced a new program, to help support current students and future physicians. The program's goal is to help recruit students from across New York State, to work in under-served medical areas.

"[On March 17th], we announced a significant partnership for us with the LECOM at Elmira to create Five Star Scholars. It's a fund to help recruit students from the geographies that we serve in the Southern Tier, Buffalo, and Syracuse. [It's] particularly [for] recruiting students [who] want to work in those markets, our rural markets, [who] have an overwhelming need for physician support," said Five Star Bank President, Martin Birmingham.

Five Star Bank presented LECOM at Elmira with a $25,000 check for the program. A couple of students will get $5,000 each.

"It’s critically important that we support the recruitment and development of local, medical talent. Particularly trained physicians because there is an overwhelming need and ultimately that supports the well-being of our communities... If we can do our part to help support the development of medical talent who is going to live and work in these communities, it just bodes well for all involved," said Birmingham.

One LECOM student from Elmira Heights said after undergrad she worked as an ER tech at Arnot, where her passion for medicine grew. She said this fund would help this medically under-served area.

"...[This] scholarship opportunity really helps students get their medical education in this area and with that being said, you tend to stay and that allows for doctors to be in this area which we desperately need... We’re really grateful for this opportunity because it helps to lighten the burden of a medical education for students in this area," said LECOM third-year med student, Maria Forte.

Richard Terry DO, MBA, and the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for LECOM of Elmira said the need for doctors locally is dire.

"This is a crisis now. We need more access to care and I’m not saying this initiative will solve that, but, it’s one step in the right direction towards getting more local students to come to medical school, in this region, in the regions that Five Star Bank covers, train here, and then stay here and practice," said Richard Terry, DO, MBA.

Dr. Terry added how there's not enough primary care physicians and how people have months-long waiting times to get in to see their doctor. He said people often have to go to Urgent Care or the Emergency Room, over something that could've been handled at a physician's office. Terry said a key to solving this problem is to recruit local students.

"Hundreds of thousands of dollars are being spent by health[care] systems to recruit primary care and specialists. They do their two, three, four years and then they’re gone. But, if we recruit local students, we target under-served areas, under-served rural areas, smaller high schools even, … Then we’ll be able to recruit them for LECOM at Elmira, [have them] do their clinical training here, [then] those are the people who will stay, practice, and [help] rebuild the supply chain of having adequate physicians for all of upstate, and that is the goal of LECOM at Elmira," said Dr. Terry.