A review of patients admitted to the female psychiatric ward of a University College Hospital in Nigeria.

A review of patients admitted to a six bedded female psychiatric ward of the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria over a seven year period is presented. 391 patients (accounting for 469 admissions) were admitted to the ward during the period under review. Young persons, those who had ever been married, and Christians predominated in the cohort. Although, the hospital serves the whole country, a majority of the patients came from the Region in which the hospital is situated and most of the patients were admitted from the outpatient clinics of the hospital. Psychosis formed the largest diagnostic category with schizophrenia predominating in this group. Paranoid symptoms were common. Sixty-three percent of the patients were discharged within one month of admission with only 6% spending longer than 60 days in the ward. 85% were assessed as having improved on discharge. There was a high defaulter rate at the follow-up clinics.