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A 29-year-old woman known to the community mental health service comes to the emergency department at 11 pm after an argument with her partner. She is tearful and demands diazepam, telling the intern he is the only doctor who has ever listened and that the last one was useless. She has no injuries, denies suicidal intent, and has a case manager she sees weekly. The intern notices he feels unusually keen to help her, is flattered, and finds himself reaching for the prescription pad. Which one of the following should he do first?
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