Nigeria has nine federal psychiatric hospitals, a handful of state ones, and psychiatry departments in most teaching hospitals. Nobody keeps a public list that is current. This is ours, built from each hospital’s own website, with the contacts we could confirm.
Nigeria has nine federal neuropsychiatric hospitals: Yaba (Lagos), Aro (Abeokuta), Benin City, Calabar, Enugu, Kaduna, Maiduguri, Kware (Sokoto) and Budo-Egba (Kwara). Five state psychiatric hospitals and the psychiatry departments of the federal and state teaching hospitals make up the rest of public psychiatric care. Every federal hospital runs an emergency unit that sees people without a referral.
How the system works
Three kinds of public hospital treat mental illness:
- Federal neuropsychiatric hospitals are stand-alone psychiatric hospitals run by the Federal Ministry of Health. They have wards, 24-hour emergency units, outpatient clinics, and usually child and adolescent, older adult, addiction and forensic services. They take people who come on their own, are brought by family, or are referred.
- Teaching hospitals are general hospitals with a psychiatry department (sometimes called mental health or behavioural sciences). They have a few psychiatric beds, weekly clinics and a psychiatrist on call for the A&E. Most ask for a referral for non-emergency visits.
- State psychiatric hospitals and state hospital units exist in a few states, with less published about them.
Before you go anywhere, our guide to therapists, counsellors and psychiatrists explains who you need. If someone is in danger now, skip to the emergency section at the end.
South-West
Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Lagos
Federal psychiatric hospital. 8 Harvey Road, Yaba, Lagos. Known as “Yaba Left”. New arrivals register at the emergency unit, open 24 hours. Phone 0815 517 0000 or 0906 000 1907; enquiries@fnphyaba.gov.ng. Our guides: Yaba Left: what to expect and psychiatric hospitals in Lagos, which also covers LUTH and LASUTH.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphyaba.gov.ng.
Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta
Federal psychiatric hospital. Aro, Abeokuta, Ogun State, with an annex at Lantoro. The oldest purpose-built psychiatric hospital in the country, with 735 beds, an assessment and emergency unit, addiction, child and adolescent, older adult, forensic and rehabilitation services. Phone 0903 638 0203. Our guide: Aro, Abeokuta: what to expect.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from main.neuroaro.gov.ng.
University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan
Federal teaching hospital. Queen Elizabeth Road, Ibadan. A psychiatry department with 64 beds, weekly clinics and a 24-hour emergency service. Phone 0813 173 3447. Our guide: psychiatric hospitals in Ibadan.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from uch-ibadan.org.ng.
Suggested read: Psychiatric Hospitals in Benin City: Where to Get Help
Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and LASUTH
LUTH’s psychiatry clinics run at its annexe at 6 Harvey Road, Yaba, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and LASUTH in Ikeja has a psychiatry department. Both are in the Lagos guide.
South-South
Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Benin City
Federal psychiatric hospital. Two sites: the headquarters at 39 Uselu, New Lagos Road, before Medical Junction, and the permanent site on Urora Road, off Idunmwunowina, on the Benin-Auchi road. Open 24 hours, with general, emergency, child and adolescent, addiction, early intervention, forensic, geriatric and community psychiatry. One of the few hospitals that publishes its fees. Phone 0815 837 0392, 0803 223 1189 (also WhatsApp) or 0815 113 0304; contactus@fnphbenin.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphbenin.gov.ng.
University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH)
Federal teaching hospital. Km 10, Benin-Lagos Expressway, Ugbowo, Benin City. Its Department of Mental Health runs alongside a 24-hour emergency room. Information desk 0913 300 0051 or 0913 400 0053; emergency room 0905 749 3732.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from ubth.org (the department is confirmed on the Federal Ministry of Information’s site; UBTH’s own site doesn’t list it).
Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Calabar
Federal psychiatric hospital. 123 Calabar Road, Calabar South, Cross River State. Emergencies 24 hours; routine assessments start at the outpatient clinic. It publishes its fees, in force from 1 January 2026. The hospital doesn’t publish a phone number; email enquiries@fnphcalabar.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphcalabar.gov.ng.
University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH)
Federal teaching hospital. UNICAL Hotel Road, off Airport Road, Calabar. Lists psychiatry among its departments.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from ucthcalabar.gov.ng.
University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH)
Federal teaching hospital. Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. Its Department of Mental Health has an outpatient clinic and male and female wards, with clinics on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Enquiries 087 290 526.
Suggested read: Psychiatric Hospitals in Ibadan: UCH and Where Else to Go
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from uuthuyo.net.
Port Harcourt
The University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital’s website doesn’t list psychiatry, so we couldn’t confirm it here. Our Port Harcourt guide will cover the city’s options when it is published.
South-East
Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Enugu
Federal psychiatric hospital. Chime Avenue, New Haven, Enugu. Started in 1962 and federal since 1995, serving the South-East and parts of the South-South and North-Central. It has an emergency unit and a clinical psychology department. Phone 0816 401 7403 or 0815 652 8670; contact@fnhe.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnhe.gov.ng.
UNTH Enugu and FMC Owerri
The websites of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital and the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, were unreachable when we checked, so their psychiatry departments aren’t confirmed here. Both cities get their own guide later this month.
North-Central
Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Budo-Egba, Kwara
Federal psychiatric hospital. Budo-Egba, Asa Local Government Area, outside Ilorin. The newest federal psychiatric hospital, approved in 2021 and the first in the North-Central, started by staff seconded from UITH. Emergency services 24 hours; clinics on weekdays and weekends. Hotline 0803 393 0554 or 0706 954 0126; info@fnphbudoegba.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphbudoegba.gov.ng.
University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH)
Federal teaching hospital. Old Jebba Road, Oke Ose, Ilorin. Its Department of Behavioural Sciences runs behavioural clinics on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings, and the hospital runs 24 hours. Customer care 0805 576 3942 or 0816 000 3477.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from uithilorin.org.ng.
National Hospital Abuja and UATH, Gwagwalada
Abuja has no federal psychiatric hospital. National Hospital in the Central Business District runs a psychiatry department with a round-the-clock psychiatry emergency room (phone 0903 009 7889), and the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital in Gwagwalada has a Mental Health Department in its own building (phone 0704 004 5614). Both are in our Abuja guide.
Suggested read: Aro, Abeokuta: What to Expect at the Psychiatric Hospital
Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH)
Federal teaching hospital. Jos, Plateau State. Its Department of Psychiatry ran public awareness events in October 2026. Phone 0913 383 8870; info@juth.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from juth.gov.ng.
Benue State University Teaching Hospital (BSUTH)
State teaching hospital. KM3 Makurdi-Gboko Road, Makurdi. A psychiatry department with general adult, geriatric, addiction, child and adolescent and emergency psychiatry. Phone 0808 720 8583.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from bsuth.org.ng.
North-West
Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Kaduna
Federal psychiatric hospital. Opposite Shagari Low Cost, Barnawa, Kaduna. A psychiatric emergency unit open 24 hours, child and adolescent, addiction, geriatric and forensic psychiatry, clinical psychology, and a telepsychiatry service. Phone 0803 272 2243; info@fnphkaduna.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphkaduna.gov.ng.
Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Zaria
Federal teaching hospital. Zaria, Kaduna State. Lists psychiatry among its services. Phone 0708 175 0333.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from abuth.gov.ng.
Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Kware, Sokoto
Federal psychiatric hospital. Kware, Sokoto State. Began in 1988 as Kware Mental Home. Its accident and emergency unit has run 24 hours since 2023, and it hosts a regional centre for women and children with drug dependence. Emergency hotline 0706 833 4606; info@fnphkware.gov.ng.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from fnphkware.gov.ng.
Suggested read: NDLEA: Full Meaning, What It Does and How It Treats Users
Kano
Kano’s main psychiatric hospital is the Kano State Psychiatric Hospital at Dawanau, a state hospital with no official website we could find, and Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital’s website doesn’t list psychiatry. So we can’t give confirmed contacts here. Our Kano guide will cover both when it is published.
North-East
Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Maiduguri
Federal psychiatric hospital. Maiduguri, Borno State. The hospital’s website was down when we checked, so we can’t give an address or number we’ve confirmed. Our Maiduguri guide will carry them.
University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH)
Federal teaching hospital. Bama Road, Maiduguri. Its Mental Health Department is listed among the clinical departments. Phone 0903 054 9474.
Last checked: 3 November 2026, from umth.gov.ng.
State psychiatric hospitals
Aro’s own count lists five state psychiatric hospitals: in Abia State; at Awka, Anambra; at Eket, Akwa Ibom; in Sokoto; and the Kano State Psychiatric Hospital at Dawanau. None has an official website we could find, so we haven’t listed contacts. Lagos State is building a 500-bed psychiatric hospital at Epe (see the Lagos guide), and press reports say Oyo State reopened a psychiatric unit at Ring Road State Hospital, Ibadan, in 2025. Ask your state ministry of health, or the nearest federal hospital above, which state service is open near you.
Which one should you go to?
- In an emergency, the nearest hospital with a 24-hour unit: any federal psychiatric hospital, or the A&E of a teaching hospital.
- For a long admission, residential addiction treatment or rehabilitation, the federal psychiatric hospitals have the beds. Teaching hospitals have few.
- For a first assessment without a referral, the federal psychiatric hospitals register new arrivals at the emergency unit. Most teaching hospitals want a referral letter or send you through their family medicine clinic first.
- For children and teenagers, Yaba, Aro, Benin, Kaduna and UCH all publish child and adolescent services.
What it costs
Benin and Calabar publish their fees on their websites. The rest don’t. Every public hospital charges for registration, consultations, tests, medicines and admission. If you’re on NHIA, the benefit package covers specialist consultations, psychiatrists included, and caps ward stays at 21 days a year with a referral. Private HMO plans vary. Our guide to whether your HMO covers therapy explains what to ask, and if you need help with drug or alcohol problems, our guide to choosing a rehab centre covers the public and private options.
Whichever hospital you use, the National Mental Health Act 2021 applies: treatment needs informed, written consent, someone admitted voluntarily who asks to leave must be released within 24 hours unless the Act’s strict conditions for involuntary care are met, and chaining or shackling anyone is a crime. Our explainer on the Mental Health Act has the detail.
If it’s an emergency now
- If someone is in immediate danger, call 112 (or 767 in Lagos).
- Psychiatric emergencies: the 24-hour emergency unit at the nearest federal psychiatric hospital above, or any hospital A&E.
- To talk to someone now: Safe Place Nigeria on 0800 800 2000, toll-free and answered 24 hours a day. Our helplines page lists more.
Where Mytherapist.ng fits
Our therapists provide talking therapy. They don’t prescribe medication or admit anyone to hospital. If you need a psychiatrist, start with the hospital nearest you. Therapy can run alongside psychiatric treatment, and you can find a therapist and see them online from any state.
Addresses and phone numbers were taken from each hospital’s own website. Last checked by phone: [DATE: fill in before publishing]. Numbers change, so call before you travel.
Frequently asked questions
How many psychiatric hospitals are in Nigeria?
Nine federal neuropsychiatric hospitals (Yaba, Aro, Benin, Calabar, Enugu, Kaduna, Maiduguri, Kware and Budo-Egba), five state psychiatric hospitals, and psychiatry departments in most teaching hospitals, according to the hospitals’ own published count.
Suggested read: Guidance and Counselling in Nigeria: History and Today
Which is the biggest psychiatric hospital in Nigeria?
Aro in Abeokuta, with 735 beds, is the largest and the oldest purpose-built one.
Is there a federal psychiatric hospital in Abuja?
No. Abuja’s public psychiatric care is at National Hospital and the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital. The nearest federal psychiatric hospital is Kaduna.
Which is the newest psychiatric hospital in Nigeria?
The Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital at Budo-Egba in Kwara State, approved in 2021 and the first in the North-Central zone.
Can I go to a federal psychiatric hospital without a referral?
Yes. Each one has an emergency or assessment unit that registers new arrivals, whether they come alone, with family or with a referral letter. Teaching hospitals usually want a referral for non-emergency visits.
This article is awaiting clinical review. It’s based on published research and health guidelines, and we’ll update it once a clinician has reviewed it.
