A handful of Sacred Hearts Academy students were taken to Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women and Children after receiving swine flu shots or nasal spray at the school yesterday morning, school principal Betty White said.

"One reported feeling lightheaded, one had a stomachache and one reported a rash," White said.

White said it is not clear that the symptoms reported by the students were due to a reaction from the flu inoculations.

By 2 p.m., all but one of the girls had been released from the hospital. One girl, who suffered from asthma, was held a little longer for chest X-rays, White said.

It was the first known instance of people reporting not feeling well after participating in the statewide H1N1 school vaccination program, which began Friday. Hawai'i is providing free swine flu shots to students at 336 public and private schools.

Janice Okubo, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health, which is organizing the school swine flu immunization clinics, said it is not unusual for people who get a swine flu shot to feel lightheaded or a bit nauseous immediately after the injection.

"We recommend that they sit and rest for about five minutes after getting the shot," Okubo said.

REQUIRED TO REST

The site of the injection can feel sore and itchy afterward as well, Okubo said.

White said the students were required to rest in the immunization room for 15 minutes before returning to class. She said she did not believe a lack of rest was to blame for the adverse reactions.

"The girls, as a matter of routine, stay in the room, seated, for about 15 minutes," White said. "And it was in that room that a lot of the reactions happened, while they were sitting there."

She added that a couple of teachers and an adult volunteer also reported feeling ill after receiving the immunization.

Okubo said a major immunization clinic was held at Moanalua Middle School on Friday and that there were virtually no adverse reactions among the 400 students there who participated.

"We're not aware of any significant responses that would warrant worry on the part of parents," Okubo said.

'WE WORK VERY HARD'

White said she hopes yesterday's incident doesn't deter others from being immunized against the H1N1 virus.

"We just hope that our experience does not scare other parents," White said. "We work very hard for parents to sign the forms and to have the shots or sprays administered, and I think we might be one of the first schools, so I hope others do not see it as a bad omen."

White said 281 Sacred Hearts students opted for an injection of flu vaccine while 106 requested the nasal spray version. Most were in the elementary grades, she said.

Eight students reported a reaction, and city paramedics were called to the school as a precaution, White said.

"We were just following policy in calling the paramedics," White said.

3 VISITS TO CAMPUS

Bryan Cheplic, spokes-man for the city Emergency Services Department, said city paramedics were sent to the school three times yesterday morning.

The first call for assistance was received at 9:27 a.m. A girl younger than 10 who was complaining of shortness of breath was taken in stable condition to a hospital, Cheplic said.

At 10:16 a.m., paramedics were called back to the school and transported two more adolescent students in stable condition to a hospital. One was complaining of stomach pains and the other of being lightheaded, Cheplic said.

The third call came at 11:22 a.m. and a woman at the school was taken to a hospital in stable condition. Cheplic said he did not know what that person's medical complaint was.

A second ambulance crew on the third visit took two more girls to a nearby hospital in stable condition. Cheplic said both girls were complaining of abdominal pain and blurry vision.

In addition, paramedics treated and released three adults and another child at the school, Cheplic said.

Okubo said "feelings of anxiety could have transferred from one student to another" resulting in the number of students who reported feeling ill after the shot.