A government-run health trust in the United Kingdom recently advertised a nursing role focused on supporting families involved in "close-relative marriage," a practice that often involves first cousins and is linked to higher genetic risks for children due to shared inherited genes, according to health officials.
The full-time position, titled "Neonatal Nurse – Close Relative Marriage," aims to support families through "informed reproductive decision-making," according to a job posting from Britain’s public health system, the National Health Service (NHS).
The role has since closed.
"Newborn Services is pleased to announce an exciting brand-new job opportunity for an experienced Neonatal Nurse," according to the official job health inequalities in infant and child mortality and morbidity."
While close-relative marriage is rare in most Western countries, it remains more common in parts of the Middle East and South Asia and within some immigrant communities in Britain, where the NHS has increasingly emphasized outreach, genetic counseling and risk awareness rather than discouraging the practice outright.
Cousin marriage is more prevalent among some communities in Britain, including those of Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage, according to value diversity and difference," according to the advert.