Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Application for Depression Management in a Tertiary Hospital Setting: Evidence from the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Calabar

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is an evidence-based psychological treatment for depression with demonstrated efficacy across diverse settings, yet its structured clinical application and patient outcome documentation in Nigerian neuropsychiatric hospital settings remain limited. This study examines the application and outcomes of CBT for depression management at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Calabar, Cross River State, South South Nigeria. A pre-test and post-test quasi-experimental design is applied to 60 outpatients meeting DSM-5 criteria for major depressive disorder, assigned to either 12 sessions of structured individual CBT or treatment as usual with pharmacotherapy. The Beck Depression Inventory-II and the Work and Social Adjustment Scale are administered at baseline, post-treatment, and three-month follow-up. Repeated measures ANOVA and effect size calculations are performed in SPSS. Available clinical psychology literature from Nigerian neuropsychiatric hospitals identifies medication non-adherence and limited psychological formulation of depression as the dominant treatment quality gaps, with CBT showing superior maintenance of gains compared to pharmacotherapy alone at follow-up. Beck's Cognitive Model of Depression and the Diathesis-Stress Framework provide the theoretical reference. Findings will support the hospital's clinical psychology department in formalising CBT service protocols and training junior clinicians in South South Nigeria. Keywords: cognitive behavioural therapy, depression, neuropsychiatric hospital, Calabar, South South Nigeria.