Quantifying the local burden of disease is an important step towards the introduction of new
vaccines, such as Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccine. We adapted a generic
protocol developed by the World Health Organization for population-based surveillance of
bacterial meningitis. All hospitals that admit paediatric patients with meningitis in the National
District, Dominican Republic were included in the system and standard laboratory methods
were used. The system identified 111 cases of confirmed bacterial meningitis. Hib was the
leading cause of bacterial meningitis, followed by group B streptococcus, S. pneumoniae, and
N. meningitidis. Unlike hospital-based case series, this population-based system was able to
calculate incidence rates. The incidence of Hib meningitis was 13 cases per 100 000 children
< 5 years old. The data from this study were used by the Ministry of Health to support the
introduction of routine Hib vaccination and will be used to monitor its effectiveness.