In one embodiment, an apparatus comprises a memory array comprising a plurality of phase change memory (PCM) cells; and a controller to determine to read data stored by the plurality of PCM cells independent of a read command from a host device; and in response to the determination to read data stored by the plurality of PCM cells independent of a read command from a host device, perform a dummy read operation on the plurality of PCM cells and perform an additional read operation on the plurality of PCM cells.