A woman who sought help from an emergency department after taking crystal methamphetamine was "quite literally locked in a closet for 24 hours", the ice inquiry heard on Tuesday.

Dr Mary Harrod, the chief executive of the NSW Users and AIDS Association (NUAA), called for the introduction of "chill spaces" so people using amphetamines had somewhere to go other than a hospital.

A former ice user. Credit:Wayne Taylor WMT

The inquiry has consistently heard people who have taken crystal methamphetamine, or ice, face stigma. They were often denied treatment at hospitals even when they presented with something unrelated to drug use such as a broken bone.

"If you’re running into trouble, if you’ve consumed methamphetamine it can be very, very challenging to go into an emergency department and try to access assistance," Dr Harrod told the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Drug 'Ice' in Sydney on Tuesday.