Telepharmacy is a rapidly growing area of communication within pharmaceutical care delivery, especially in rural areas. The purpose of this literature review is to determine how telepharmacy is currently being practiced within community and ambulatory pharmacy settings, its effectiveness, and how it is being regulated across the United States. A literature review was performed using PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and the Google search engine. State-specific rules were researched using board of pharmacy and legislative online resources. Telepharmacy has been successfully implemented within community pharmacy settings through the creation of remote dispensing sites. The increasing focus of state regulations on telepharmacy services and practices shows the growth and acceptance of this modality of pharmacy practice. There is wide variation among state regulations pertaining to the setup and operation of telepharmacies. Trends in telemedicine show that telepharmaceutical care is likely to continue to expand as it allows for a better allocation of resources and access to more patients. However, research needs to be conducted to specifically analyze the value and place for telepharmacy services.

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Nanofiltration (NF) membranes have been used for different applications in water treatment. In this work, we studied two facile surficial adhesive functionalization processes using polydopamine (pDA) and a metal–organic framework (MOFs) and investigated their individual and synergistic effects on membrane rejection, permeability, and antifouling properties. The copper MOF nanoparticles (Cu-MOF) were synthesized and incorporated with the pDA for surface coating of NF membranes using two different static (dip-coating) and dynamic (filtration-assisted) fabrication processes. All of the functionalized membranes were characterized completely, and the effects of pDA and Cu-MOF separately and together on the membrane physicochemical properties were identified. The results showed that the surface functionalization by only pDA enhanced the dye rejection from 22% (blank) to 98% (pDA-functionalized membrane). The dip-coating approach resulted in uniform polymerization of pDA on the membrane surface, while the filtration-assisted technique generated a deficient pDA layer. The incorporation of Cu-MOF into the pDA layer improved the permeability of the pDA-functionalized membrane by increasing the hydrophilicity of membranes and providing more water pathways due to the porous structure of MOFs. In addition, the molecular dynamics (MD) investigation of MOF-functionalized membranes revealed the role of embedded Cu-MOF charge repulsion mechanisms in the rejection of anionic and cationic dyes.

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) represent one of the largest classes of porous crystalline materials. MOFs have been increasingly applied as functionalizing agents for membranes because of their porosity, high surface area, small particle size, aspect ratio control, tuneability, compatibility with a polymeric network, and exuberance of diverse functional groups. In this comprehensive review paper, we discuss achievements, opportunities, and challenges related to the functionalization of different types of membranes using MOFs for water and wastewater treatment and desalination. The current synthesis and fabrication approaches of MOF-functionalized membranes were identified and critically reviewed. The effects of MOFs on membrane performance, including permeation, selectivity, and antifouling, were discussed. Also, the application of MOF-functionalized membranes in aqueous environments for conventional applications such as heavy metal removal and emerging applications such as resource recovery was enunciated. Finally, recommendations and future directions were provided for further improvement in the field of MOF-functionalized membranes for water treatment and reuse.