Kaduna:About half of the patients treated at the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital in Kaduna are dealing with substance-abuse-related disorders, according to the hospital’s Medical Director, Prof. A’ishatu Yusha’u-Armiya’u.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Prof. Yusha’u-Armiya’u shared this information during a media event in Kaduna designed to introduce the hospital’s new patient cards, telepsychiatry services, and other digital advancements. The increase in acute substance-abuse cases has led the hospital to create a specialized toxicology ward to address these issues.
The medical director explained that managing patients with acute substance-related conditions alongside other psychiatric patients posed significant challenges, including aggression during withdrawal which sometimes led to attempted escapes and damage to facilities. As a result, an existing ward, initially under renovation, was repurposed into a toxicology ward with a 52-patient capacity. Patients stay for up to a month before potentially entering the Drug Abuse Treatment, Education and Rehabilitation (DATER) programme.
Substance-use disorder is classified as a mental health condition under the International Classification of Diseases and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Admission to the rehabilitation programme usually requires patient consent, though the Mental Health Act 2021 allows for involuntary admission if a patient is deemed a danger to themselves or others. The DATER ward, with a capacity for 42 patients, involves a four-month structured treatment programme with a multidisciplinary team.
In community-based mental healthcare, Prof. Yusha’u-Armiya’u noted that mental health services are part of primary healthcare but are not sufficiently available at the grassroots level. The hospital has partnered with Kaduna State agencies to extend mental health services into communities. Personnel from 19 general hospitals received training under the Mental Health Gap Action Programme, and 23 centres of excellence began implementing these services in August, seeing 1,075 patients in the first month. Substance-abuse cases are also managed through this community approach, which aims to focus on awareness, prevention, and reducing stigma.
To further expand treatment capacity, the hospital is renovating additional wards, including 54-bed and 44-bed facilities, while continuing to combine clinical services with research, training, and community-based interventions to improve mental healthcare delivery.