Our medical records system - Cellma

How we use your information

The UK Civil Aviation Authority's (CAA's) Medical Department collects and stores your name, address, email address, telephone number and medical data for the purpose of overseeing fitness of Pilots and Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs), and for formulating guidance on medical standards. This incorporates all medical examinations associated with the initial issue, and revalidation or renewal of medical certificates for both private and commercial pilots and air traffic controllers. A medical fitness assessment encompasses the physical, mental and psychological fitness of aviation personnel.

The Medical Department also undertakes research into aircrew health and many other aspects of flight safety including the health of air traffic controllers. 

Why we process your personal information

The processing of your personal information is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject. 

Who sees your personal information and why

The CAA takes data protection very seriously and is fully compliant with the requirements of GDPR. We assure you that any personal data you submit will be held securely. Read our general privacy notice for further information. We keep a complete record of who has access to your data and any actions made against your record. Enforcement action will be taken against any misuse or inappropriate access to your data.

Limited CAA staff use the Cellma medical records system to access your data in order to complete their routine, working functions. Aeromedical Examiners (AME), AME administrative and clinical staff, and other health professionals including cardiologists, optometrist and ophthalmologists all have access to your data in Cellma. In all cases, users only have the level of access required to undertake their role in supporting regulatory, certificatory and enforcement functions. Access to Cellma is regularly monitored and audited by the CAA. 

Cellma is provided by RioMed, a UK-based company, which also has offices overseas. 

All of the CAA medical data, including a full backup, is stored within the UK. A small number of CAA and RioMed IT staff have controlled access to your information for the purpose of system support. Technical system support provided by RioMed is performed by their India office. They do not have routine or regular access to your data. Access will be made on a case-by-case basis with necessary safeguards in place. The usual reason for accessing the system will be to fix a technical problem.

In the event that we do transfer personal data to outside of the UK, we ensure that there are appropriate safeguards in place to certify that it is adequately protected as required by data protection legislation.

We will also disclose personal information to other bodies or individuals when required to do so by, or under, any act of legislation, by any rule of law, and by court order.

We need to share some of your non-medical personal data with Worldpay, based in the UK, for the purpose of processing payments. The CAA does not process or store any of your payment card data. The processing of your personal data is necessary for the purposes of our, or our third party's contract and does not affect your fundamental rights and freedoms as a data subject.

Multi-factor authentication

To ensure secure customer identity and access management, multi-factor authentication is used. The CAA uses Azure Active Directory B2C. Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) B2C is Microsoft's business-to-consumer identity management service. Your username and phone number is required during the authentication process. No other personal data is shared during the authentication process. 

Authentication is based on creating a unique username and password that provides access to the account information we hold. All those that register (Class 1, Class 2, Class 3, LAPL and medical healthcare professionals) for new 'Medical' service(s) will also need to go through a multi-factor authentication step to access Cellma and their personal medical records.

Accessing your personal data and medical record in Cellma.

To access your own personal medical record and to track the progress of applications and referrals to the Authority, you will need to have an identification check. This identification check can be carried out either face to face with an Aeromedical Examiner (AME) or at the CAA Medical Department when you attend for an appointment with a CAA consultant.

You will be able to view data recorded on your Cellma record once this “ID Verification” step is completed by the AME/CAA in Cellma. Prior to this you will be able to submit new applications and view these in Cellma.

Information about privacy at Microsoft. 

We retain your personal information as follows: