A meeting between key agencies into the future of mental health and social work services in the southern half of the Loddon Shire has been described as positive.

From September 30, funding for a mental health worker and alcohol and drug services provided a social worker will not continue at the Inglewood and Districts Health Service.

The funding, provided by the Murray Primary Health Network, will instead be put towards chronic disease to tackle the areas with the highest rates of mortality and morbidity – heart and lung diseases, and diabetes.

Inglewood and Districts Health Service acting chief executive Kathy Huett said a meeting on Monday between the health service, Murray PHN, Loddon Shire Council, Northern District Community Health and Loddon Healthy Minds Network was positive.

“It was agreed the services were vital to the Loddon and Gannawarra communities and we agreed to work collaboratively to develop a solution,” she said.

“We have to work together - it is not something any one of us can do in isolation.”

Ms Huett said discussions were ongoing and Murray PHN was looking to develop a transition strategy for the future of the services.

“We’re hoping that there will be services in place but the model of those services could look very different to what they are now,” she said.

Northern District Community Health chief executive Greg Little said his organisation was also affected by the change in funding, but not as great as Inglewood.

Murray PHN will also reallocate funding provided to the health service for its group work programs, but Mr Little said Northern District Community Health would continue to fund the programs itself for 2017 at least.

“Our programs are very much about empowering people in the community to take control of their own health and how to manage it going forwards,” he said.

“We’ll continue it this year because we want it to continue.”

Mr Little said the discussions between the agencies had created a lot of goodwill between the health services.

“It has strengthened our resolve in a lot of ways - we want to be here for our communities,” he said.